Study reveals widespread fires on listed Indonesian firms’ land
Fires damaged 2.88 million hectares from January to October, including land leased to major Indonesian plantation firms, fuelled by El Niño, extreme heat and forest clearing.
A study has uncovered extensive forest fires on lands owned by major Indonesian corporations, underscoring the impact of deforestation and inadequate fire management in the nation's worst fire season in years. From January to October 2022, 2.88 million hectares of land, equivalent to 7.1 million acres, were damaged by fires, with emissions surging to three times the seasonal average.
This surge in fires was attributed to intense El Niño conditions, extreme heat, and the clearing of forests for industrial-scale palm oil and pulpwood plantations. While the source did not determine the cause of the fires, it highlighted the dangers of degraded peatlands and poor fire management practices in rapidly expanding agricultural concessions.
The study looked into specific instances of fires on large holdings, including those involving companies under investigation in Singapore due to their transboundary haze law violations. It found that over 14,600 hectares of land were burned at PT Bumi Mekar Hijau, an exclusive supplier to Singapore's Asia Pulp & Paper. Similarly, at least 3,742 hectares of land were affected at PT Kayung Agro Lestari, a palm oil concession in West Kalimantan run by Singapore-listed First Resources.
The study also identified significant fire damage at an oil palm concession owned by Bumitama Agri, with 88% of the affected area on peatland. Banks and investors supporting such risky operations in Indonesia should make access to financing contingent on credible fire prevention measures, the study concluded.
Written by urgent.news from Free Malaysia Today's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
