TANJUNG (TABIRkota) – The Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) of Tabalong Regency, South Kalimantan, has detected seven hotspots with medium to high accuracy.
The Head of the Tabalong BPBD, Haris Fakhrozi, stated that the seven hotspots were caused by land clearing using fire.
“Over the past week, weather conditions in Tabalong have changed significantly with no rain, which has triggered an increase in temperature and a decrease in humidity levels,” he said in Tanjung, the capital of Tabalong, on Thursday (September 25).
He added that some residents have taken advantage of these hot conditions to clear land for plantations by using fire.
“In an effort to mitigate forest and land fires (Karhutla) and haze, the BPBD team conducted field inspections of the monitored hotspots,” he said.
The seven monitored hotspots were located in Uwie, Ribang, Saradang, Hayup, Kaong, Kasiau, and Sungai Pimping villages.
A joint team from the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), the Indonesian National Police (Polri), and the Forest Management Unit (KPH) conducted field inspections at the hotspot locations and discovered land burning of one hectare in Hayup, four hectares in Ribang, and three hectares in Panaan.
Before conducting the inspections, the team first analyzed the priority scale, the accessibility of the areas, and the means to be used.
Haris Fakhrozi added that officers in the field prioritized a persuasive approach with those who burned the land to prevent the fires from spreading.
“The most important aspect of the inspections is ensuring that the fires can be quickly contained and prevented from spreading,” he added.
If ground firefighting is not possible due to difficult terrain or the extensive area of the burned land, then aerial extinguishing options will be implemented using water bombing, Weather Modification Operations (WMO), or artificial rain. (ra)
