September Expected to Bring Peak Forest Fires as Indonesia Maximizes Weather Modification and Water Bombing

Indonesia’s Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni has described September as the country’s main battleground in the response to forest and land fires, with rain not expected in some forecasts until early October.

Raja Juli said weather modification operations should be maximized while conditions still allow them. He called the intervention the most effective available response and said authorities were seeking advice on how to use the remaining operational window.

The response will also include water bombing and ground teams. Raja Juli asked officials to place personnel according to the concentration of hotspots and rotate them several times a day to protect crews from exhaustion. The Forestry Ministry is working to add more than 1,000 personnel through a temporary support arrangement known as BKO. Additional staff without specialized firefighting skills can still assist with support duties.

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This month is our battleground.

The National Disaster Management Agency reported that hotspots in West Kalimantan continued to rise, while South and Central Kalimantan recorded declines. West Kalimantan had 7,377 hotspots, an increase of 3,553, and 72 fire spots, up by 16. Visibility there fell below one kilometer.

Central Kalimantan recorded 5,244 hotspots after a decline of 147, while its fire spots rose by 16 to 72. South Kalimantan had 504 hotspots, down by 405, and 55 fire spots, an increase of three. Visibility in South Kalimantan remained below two kilometers. In Sumatra, fire spots in Riau, South Sumatra and Jambi generally declined, although hotspots increased in South Sumatra.

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The most effective one is indeed weather modification operations.