"Meanwhile, the rest or 58 cases can not be dealt with optimally due to access difficulty to reach the locations and lack of water sources in the fire sites," Head of the Dumai Agriculture, Plantation and Forestry Office Suriyanto said here Wednesday.
The hot-spots were detected among other things in East Dumai (six hotspots), Bukit Kapur (13), Medang Kampai (nine) and Sungai Sembilan (41).
Most of the fires were located in industrial forests (HTI), concessionary forests belonging to PT Suntara Gajapatih (SGP), Sinar Mas, Surya Dumai Agrindo and ex-PT Dock.
"Only few of them were abandoned lands owned by the government and community, and also oil palm plantations," he said.
Lack of personnel was also a problem hindering the fire handling in Dumai, Suriyanto said.
"If we have enough budget, we will be able to solve the problems in the field," Suriyanto said.
In Dumai, a number of local Residents have begun to suffer from respiratory problems due to the haze.
"At night, the air becomes choking. The smell of haze also stings. The haze seems to be very thick," Suhendra (32), a local resident, said in Dumai recently.
Marjoko Santoso, head of the Dumai health service, has warned the public that the air quality in the region has deteriorated due to haze containing excessive sulfur dioxide which is hazardous to human health.
The Air Pollution Standard Index board owned by PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia (CPI) showed the pollutant standard index at 242 meaning a very dangerous level, he said on July 4.
According to him, the air condition in Dumai has been very dangerous for people of all walks of life, especially for those having respiratory problems.
(Uu.F001/H-NG)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
