BNPB Head Suharyanto stated that Central Kalimantan's extensive peatlands are highly susceptible to fires during the dry season, while NTT lacks peatlands.
"Although East Nusa Tenggara has a larger area burning, it can be extinguished by rains or watering intervention, as it is not a peatland," he explained on Friday.
He remarked that fire control in Central Kalimantan is more complex, similar to other priority provinces, including West Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, South Sumatra, Jambi, and Riau.
Hence, he suggested that the government respond to fires in these six provinces by deploying fully equipped ground task force teams and using aerial spraying with special aircraft or weather modification techniques to increase rainfall.
"If fires affect peatlands, the challenge becomes significant; the fires cannot be immediately extinguished even with water applied," Suharyanto explained.
The agency reminded that preparedness to mitigate forest and land fires must be prioritized to reduce ecological damage and public health impacts in every region, as the peak of the dry season approaches through early September.
According to the Ministry of Forestry's forest and land fire indication map from January to June 2025, around 8,594 hectares of land were burned, with peatlands accounting for more than 80.15 percent of the affected areas.
Among the six priority provinces, West Kalimantan Province recorded the largest burned areas with 1,149 hectares, followed by Riau Province with approximately 751 hectares, Central Kalimantan with 146 hectares, and Jambi and South Sumatra with 43 hectares. However, no reports are available on the extent of the fires in South Kalimantan.
In East Nusa Tenggara, the Forestry Ministry data shows that 1,424.23 hectares were burned from January to June 2025.
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Translator: M. Riezko Bima, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Primayanti
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