Forest and peatland fires in Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua have triggered a severe transboundary haze crisis across Southeast Asia, impacting neighboring nations such as Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.

The consequences across the region are acute and far-reaching: deteriorating air quality, spikes in respiratory illnesses, school closures, flight disruptions, suppressed tourism and widespread socioeconomic fallout.

It is entirely justifiable for the public to question who is responsible and to examine the root causes. However, it is fundamentally flawed to reduce the issue to a single culprit: the palm oil industry. Despite this narrative being widely amplified across social media, the reality is far more complex.

Correlation Is Not Causation

Multiple sectors are actively engaged in land clearing and land management across Indonesia. Beyond oil palm cultivation, these include industrial forestry, other plantation crops, smallholder agriculture, mining and various infrastructure developments.

“While satellite imagery often detects hot spots and burn scars within oil palm concessions, correlation must not be conflated with causation. The mere presence of fire within a concession boundary does not establish that the concession holder initiated it.”

Numerous operational and environmental variables must be considered. Fires frequently ignite outside concession borders and sweep inward, or originate within community-held enclaves inside concessions, over which companies exercise no direct control. In such scenarios, oil palm operators are victims rather than perpetrators.

Furthermore, external human activities often produce sparks or embers that are carried into plantation areas by high winds. These landscapes are exceptionally vulnerable during periods of severe drought, compounded in critical years by the El Niño phenomenon.

Technical constraints, such as satellite sensor resolution, can also misattribute fire locations.

What Indonesian Law Says

Crucially, Indonesian law explicitly permits local communities to clear up to 2 hectares of land using fire under traditional practices, as stipulated in Article 69 of Law No. 32/2009 on environmental protection and management.^[2]

While critics allege that this legal provision may be exploited, the reality of strict domestic enforcement, combined with stringent international market demands, notably the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), makes it economically and legally untenable for commercial palm oil companies to deliberately clear land through open burning.^[1]

Domestically, the government enforces rigorous statutory frameworks prohibiting land clearing through burning. Three major legislative instruments impose severe administrative and penal sanctions on noncompliant operators: Law No. 32/2009; Law No. 39/2014 on plantations (notably Article 88, which penalizes unauthorized burning); and Law No. 41/1999 on Forestry.^[2]

Fines for proven violations can reach hundreds of billions of rupiah, potentially surpassing the asset value of offending firms. In addition, Law No. 39/2014 and Government Regulation (PP) No. 4/2001 mandate that all plantation companies actively maintain fire prevention and suppress forest fires, both within and adjacent to their concessions.^[2]

Fire Preparedness and Market Access

According to Statistics Indonesia (BPS), 2,286 palm oil enterprises operate nationwide.^[3]

Under these guidelines, members maintain dedicated firefighting units, stage emergency logistics, deploy monitoring infrastructure, mobilize wildfire task forces, train field personnel, coordinate with local authorities and assist surrounding communities in fire mitigation. These protocols ensure compliance with domestic law while aligning operations with international sustainability benchmarks.

Market access reinforces this discipline. To supply global markets, particularly Europe, companies must obtain recognized sustainability certifications, such as the Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) or the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). The government has made ISPO mandatory for all growers to guarantee traceable, deforestation-free supply chains.^[5]

With the EUDR establishing strict market entry criteria, oil palm growers have long treated environmental compliance as an operational imperative rather than a recent obligation. The EUDR will take effect for large and medium-sized enterprises on Dec. 30, 2026, and for smallholders on June 30, 2027.^[1]

An Economic Cornerstone

Palm oil remains the world’s most productive and versatile vegetable oil, yielding up to eight times more oil per hectare than competing oilseeds. This unparalleled land use efficiency makes it indispensable to global consumer supply chains.^[4]

Addressing transboundary haze requires comprehensive, evidence-based field research into all contributing causes alongside coordinated regional mitigation efforts.

“As growers we welcome accountability, provided claims are substantiated by rigorous, on-the-ground investigations rather than speculative blame. We urge all stakeholders to approach the issue with objectivity, factual rigor and scientific integrity.”

Indonesian oil palm growers remain committed partners in resolving this environmental challenge once and for all.