Head of the Disaster Data, Information, and Communication Center of the BNPB Abdul Muhari on Thursday said that weather modification operations, which involve spreading salt using aircraft to make rain clouds, are still quite effective in controlling rain intensity.
According to him, the weather modification conducted in December 2024 and January 2025 in Java Island was effective in reducing rain intensity and the potential for hydrometeorological disasters.
Based on BNPB's monitoring, rain intensity in Central Java, including Jepara, Pati, Demak, and Semarang, as well as West Java, including Sukabumi, Cianjur, and surrounding areas, fell by around 60–70 percent per day after the weather modification operation.
"Hydrometeorological disaster mitigation will be carried out by controlling rain with weather modification operations and preparing the community and local government, including the potential for rain to continue due to the La Nina phenomenon," Muhari explained.
He informed that the government spent Rp204.9 billion (USD12 million) in 2024 to carry out 746 flights to spread hundreds of tons of salt in weather modification operations in Aceh, North Sumatra, West Sumatra, South Sumatra, Banten, West Java, Central Java, East Java, East Kalimantan, Bali, West Nusa Tenggara, and Papua.
Based on an evaluation, Muhari said that his party will need analysis and synergy from ministries and technical institutions in conducting weather modification operations to minimize the potential for hydrometeorological disasters, floods, and landslides this year.
BNPB, as the controller of weather modification operations, will refer to the analysis by the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) of regional factors causing an increase in disaster potential.
Meanwhile, the implementation of weather modification operations will involve the Indonesian Air Force, he added.
"We handle the upstream and downstream properly and carefully," Muhari said.
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Translator: M. Riezko Bima, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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