Forest and land fires (Karhutla) are environmental challenges that affect many countries, including Indonesia. The phenomenon is not just caused by human activities, but it also has to do with extreme weather, long dry season, vegetation characteristics, and land management in respective regions.
Karhutla is a type of disaster that causes harm to the ecology and humans. It has not just impacted people living around the fires, but also public health, economic activities, transportation, education, and the sustainability of ecosystems.
Considering those factors, then attributing Karhutla directly and exclusively to oil palm plantations does not reflect the complexity of real problems of Karhutla. Data shows that Karhutla does not only occur in palm oil producing areas, but also in non-palm oil producing areas with a significant scale.
Karhutla affects almost all provinces of Indonesia
Data from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) indicates that forest and land fires (Karhutla) between 2010 and 2022 occurred across nearly all Indonesian provinces.
While major palm oil-producing provinces such as South Sumatra, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, Riau, and West Kalimantan recorded relatively large burned areas, regions outside these hubs also experienced significant fires. These include East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), East Java, Central Java, and West Java.
This demonstrates that the presence of oil palm plantations is not the sole factor determining the occurrence of forest and land fires. Such fires can occur across various ecosystem types and land-use categories, regardless of whether plantation activities are present.
Non-palm oil producing provinces also experience Karhutla
Data indicate that several provinces not known as centers for oil palm plantations have actually experienced extensive forest and land fires.
For instance, East Nusa Tenggara recorded a larger average area of such fires compared to a number of palm oil-producing provinces. Similarly, East Java, Central Java, and West Java continued to experience land fires despite lacking large-scale oil palm plantations like those found in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
Furthermore, provinces that do have oil palm plantations such as Aceh, West Sumatra, and Bengkulu recorded relatively smaller areas of forest and land fires compared to some non-palm oil provinces.
These conditions demonstrate that there is no consistent relationship between the presence of oil palm plantations and the incidence of forest and land fires.
Karhutla not only occurs in peatland areas
The view that forest and land fires are synonymous with peatlands is not entirely accurate. Such fires have been recorded in various regions with differing land characteristics, including areas that lack extensive peat ecosystems. East Java, West Nusa Tenggara, and West Java, for instance, experience land fires despite not being predominantly peat-based regions.
Analysis by Global Forest Watch indicates that during the major fires of 2019, approximately 61 percent of the burned area was located outside of peatlands. This means that fires occur not only in peat ecosystems but also across various other types of land use.
Most of hotspots found outside palm plantation areas
Satellite-based studies provide a clearer picture of fire locations. During the 2015 forest and land fires, approximately 86 percent of fire hotspots were detected outside oil palm plantation concessions. The majority were found in state forest areas, forestry concessions, and pulp and paper concessions.
A similar pattern was observed during the 2019 fires. Analysis showed that approximately 89 percent of hotspots were located outside oil palm plantation concessions. Most hotspots were found in state forest areas, pulpwood concessions, and logging concessions.
These findings indicate that the majority of national forest and land fires occurred in areas other than oil palm plantation concessions.
Oil palm plantations also become victims of Karhutla
Forest and land fires not only damage forest areas and open land but also impact the oil palm plantations themselves.
Dense smoke can disrupt plant photosynthesis, reduce productivity, hinder operational activities, and increase fire control costs. Consequently, oil palm plantation companies have a significant interest in preventing and managing such fires.
In recent years, the palm oil industry has also continued to strengthen early detection systems, integrated patrols, satellite-based hotspot monitoring, and the provision of firefighting equipment, while fostering collaboration with the government and local communities.
Karhutla prevention needs collaborations of all people
Forest and land fires are a multidimensional issue requiring a collaborative approach. The government, the public, the plantation and forestry sectors, academia, and civil society organizations all play vital roles in fire prevention and suppression efforts.
Data-driven analysis indicates that these fires do not occur exclusively in palm oil production hubs or solely on peatlands. But they are scattered across various Indonesian provinces with diverse geographical characteristics.
Therefore, efforts to control forest and land fires must be grounded in scientific facts, spatial data, and comprehensive analysis to ensure that the resulting solutions are effective and sustainable.
Data and empirical evidence indicate that forest and land fires are a national phenomenon occurring in both palm oil-producing provinces and those that are not. Furthermore, the majority of fire hotspots have been detected outside of oil palm plantation concessions.
Consequently, there is no evidence to suggest that these fires are systematically or specifically caused by the presence of oil palm plantations. On the contrary, oil palm plantations are themselves among the victims of forest and land fires.
The primary focus for all stakeholders should be to strengthen integrated efforts in prevention, mitigation, and response regarding forest and land fires, in order to safeguard environmental sustainability, public health, and national economic growth. (*)
Kementerian Lingkungan Hidup dan Kehutanan (KLHK). 2022. Data Luas Kebakaran Hutan dan Lahan (Karhutla) Indonesia (data diinput sampai dengan periode Juli 2022). Global Forest Watch Fires. 2019. Darmawan DHA. 2020. Fuelling the Fires: Practical Steps Towards Wildfires in Indonesia. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science 504. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/504/1/012021
