Indonesia's
forest fires: everything you need to know
The
fires devastating Indonesia have been called a ‘crime against
humanity’. How did they start, what damage are they causing and
who’s to blame?
Oliver Balch
Wednesday 11
November 2015 15.37 GMT
Where are the fires?
As satellite data of
the fire hotspots shows, forest fires have affected the length and
breadth of Indonesia. Among the worst hit areas are southern
Kalimantan (Borneo) and western Sumatra. The fires have been raging
since July, with efforts to extinguish them hampered by seasonal dry
conditions exacerbated by the El Nino effect. As well as Indonesia,
the acrid haze from the fires is engulfing neighbouring Malaysia and
Singapore and has reached as far as southern Thailand.
What is the damage?
The most obvious
damage is to the forest where the fires are occurring. Indonesia’s
tropical forests represent some of the most diverse habitats on the
planet. The current fire outbreak adds to decades of existing
deforestation by palm oil, timber and other agribusiness operators,
further imperilling endangered species such as the orangutan.
The human cost is
stark; 19 people have died and an estimated 500,000 cases of
respiratory tract infections have been reported since the start of
the fires. It’s estimated that the fires could cause more than
100,000 premature deaths in the region.
Financial damage to
the region’s economy is still being counted, but the Indonesian
government’s own estimates suggest it could be as high as $47bn, a
huge blow to the country’s economy. A World Bank study (pdf) on
forest fires last year in Riau province estimated that they caused
$935m of losses relating to lost agricultural productivity and trade.
What is causing the
fires?
Forest fires have
become a seasonal phenomenon in Indonesia. At the root of the problem
is the practice of forest clearance known as slash and burn, where
land is set on fire as a cheaper way to clear it for new planting.
Peat soil, which characterises much of the affected areas, is highly
flammable, causing localised fires to spread and making them
difficult to stop.
Who is responsible?
It’s a blame game,
with everyone pointing the finger at someone else. Environmental
group WWF Indonesia, which has been highlighting the problem of
Indonesia’s recurrent fires for years, says that the fires are
caused by the “collective negligence” of companies, smallholders
and government (which isn’t investing sufficiently in preventative
measures).
Many blame big
business. According to a recent analysis of World Resources Institute
data in September, more than one third (37%) of the fires in Sumatra
are occurring on pulpwood concessions. A good proportion of the rest
are on or near land used by palm oil producers. “Many of these
fires are a direct result of the industrial manipulation of the
landscape for plantation development,” says Lindsey Allen,
executive director of the conservation organisation Rainforest Action
Network.
In September, the
Indonesian police arrested seven executives in connection with the
fires, including a senior executive from Bumi Mekar Hijau (BMH),
which supplied Jakarta-based paper giant Asia Pulp and Paper (APP).
Others look away
from the big corporations for blame. According to Henry Purnomo,
professor at Indonesia’s Bogor Agricultural University and a
scientist at research group CIFOR, there are two culprits: poor
small-scale farmers looking to expand their farmland, and rogue
operators intent on illegally clearing forests for land acquisition.
Global corporations
operating in the area also blame smallholders and under-the-radar
companies. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, which counts many
big palm oil businesses as members, has consistently said that the
instances of fire on certified palm plantations in the affected
region (which number 137) measure in single digits. Brendan May,
chairman of sustainability advisory firm Robertsbridge (which has APP
as a client), argues that it’s “not in companies’ best
interest” to set fire to their own assets – an argument some
campaign groups dispute.
What needs to be
done?
Ending the practice
of slash and burn is vital. Companies – big and small - must be
held to account, before the law and the market, if found culpable.
Smallholders need
assistance and incentives to pursue alternative, less harmful
practices of forest management. Forest-dwelling communities often
lack the skills and training, according to a recent CIFOR report .
Meanwhile processors and buyers often fail to pay smallholders a fair
price, something the signatories to the Sustainable Palm Oil
Manifesto (which claims to go beyond RSPO certification standards)
have pledged to correct.
Many big firms, such
as palm producer Wilmar and timber giant APP, have signed
zero-deforestation pledges in recent years. But the real test comes
in pushing their commitments beyond the boundary fences of their
plantations and down into their supply chains, where smaller firms
operate with less public scrutiny.
Many are calling on
the Indonesian government to step up. WWF-Indonesia’s deputy
director, Irwan Gunawan, says the government action lacks clout and
“has not yet resulted in deterrent effect to prevent any
recurrence”.
Removing the culture
of political patronage that protects private companies in Indonesia
is essential, says Purnomo. A budgetary rethink is also required. At
present, the ratio of public spending on fire suppression versus
prevention is around 80:20, Purnomo says.
Another major
contribution to reducing future fires would be an up-to-date online,
searchable land registry. Land tenure in Indonesia is often unknown
or disputed, making it difficult to establish where responsibility
lies. Coupling such a database with digital mapping technologies such
as WRI’s Global Forest Watch could make identifying the culprits a
whole lot easier. One Map, a government-backed project to develop
such a spatial mapping solution, is currently under development.
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