Reducing wildfires will be challenging as El Niño peaks this month, minister war...

Indonesia's forestry minister has warned that tackling wildfires across the nation will be a daunting task as the El Nino weather phenomenon reaches its peak this month. According to Raja Juli Antoni, the devastation is largely man-made, stemming from deliberate acts of arson by individuals or corporations. Indonesia has ramped up efforts to contain the haze from forest and land fires in six provinces on the Borneo and Sumatra islands, resulting in respiratory illnesses and the closure of thousands of schools, including in neighboring Malaysia.

As the super-El Nino weather conditions exacerbate the fires, causing drought, hot spots have been reduced across Kalimantan and Sumatra by the end of August. However, Raja Juli cautions that September will be the most challenging month, marking the main fight against the wildfires. The haze has caused over 50,000 cases of acute respiratory infections across seven provinces between July and August, according to health ministry official Andi Saguni.

Winds have blown the haze to surrounding provinces, leading to infections in areas without wildfires.

Forestry ministry data reveals that wildfires burned approximately 200,000 hectares of land from January to July, a substantial increase from 107,465 hectares from January to June. Raja Juli suspects that the majority of these fires were deliberately set, either by individuals or corporations, despite ongoing crackdowns. Six forestry permit holders have been fined, and a criminal probe is under consideration. Satellite imaging has identified 42 companies with high wildfire potential on concessions within the country.

In an effort to combat the fires, authorities have employed weather modification techniques, triggering rain and water bombing affected areas to contain the hot spots and mitigate the fires. Meanwhile, the Philippines reported that the haze blanketed Manila's capital on Tuesday, pushing air quality to very unhealthy and acutely unhealthy levels in some areas. Malaysia's environmental department data shows that the air quality in six areas of its Sarawak state reached hazardous levels on Tuesday.