Jakarta, Ekuatorial – Dry season started in August has led to increasing forest fires, especially in Riau and Kalimantan provinces, said a senior scientist on Thursday, in Jakarta.
“This year’s dry season came a bit late, in August. [However] it will be short [dry season] as October will start to rain,” said Edvin Aldrian, Head of Climate Change and Air Quality Center, Meteorological Climatology and Geophysics Agency, or BMKG,
Furthermore, he said that the drought was not influenced by El Nino as there has yet signs from the weather phenomenon approaching the country.
Arief Yuwono, Head of Environmental Damage Control and Climate Change, Ministry of Environment, said that drought, which has been felt in several regions in Indonesia, can be the cause for forest fires.
However, Yuwono said that they would need to do ground checking whether it was caused by human or weather.
“We will see if it’s allegedly burned down or other reason after the field visit,” he said adding that he will be visiting Central Kalimantan over forest fires cases in the province, on Friday.
Based on the ministry’s data, nine provinces, — Jambi, North Sumatera, South Sumatra, Riau, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, East Kalimantan and North Kalimantan –, are prone to forest fires escalated by long dry season.
If the culprit was human, he said legal actions must be taken in accordance to the regulation.
On recent Terra satellite monitoring, there are 563 hotspots recorded in Kalimantan and Riau. Januar Hakam.