JAKARTA, Oct 2 — The Indonesian government, via its Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK), has denied allegations regarding haze from forest and land fires (karhutla) in Indonesia crossing into Malaysia.
In an official statement today, Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar said Malaysia’s complaint about Indonesian haze is inaccurate.
“We have been monitoring the situation, and there is no transboundary haze reaching Malaysia,” she said.
Regarding the imagery of haze crossing borders, the ministry received reports of haze distribution imagery from the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) and the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) for the period from September 28 to September 30, 2023, up until yesterday afternoon at 1600 WIB (Western Indonesian Time).
According to Siti Nurbaya, there is no transboundary haze from Indonesia crossing into Malaysia. Based on ASMC’s observations, for several days, the haze was moderate to dense, as observed in several areas in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
On October 1, 2023, the haze began to thicken in Central Kalimantan (Kalteng) and South Sumatra (Sumsel). Nevertheless, there was no observed cross-border haze.
ASMC is a regional collaborative programme among the National Meteorological Services (NMSs) of Asean member countries. ASMC operates under the Singapore Meteorological Service.
Meanwhile, based on satellite observations by the Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the imagery of haze distribution in Indonesian regions over those three days showed haze detected in several areas in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
The prevailing wind direction in Indonesia is generally from the southeast to the northwest and northeast, and no cross-border haze has been detected.
“So it is clear, both sources confirm that there is no cross-border haze,” she said.
Furthermore, various notes from various parties need attention. Currently, the Indonesian government is continuing its efforts to extinguish fires burning in forests and peatlands in South Sumatra, Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, and several other regions on the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan, as well as parts of Java.
Various operations are being carried out to extinguish the fires, ranging from ground firefighting to water bombing and weather modification technology.
KLHK has revealed that 203 companies have received warnings, and 20 companies have been sealed due to their involvement in the fires, including subsidiaries of Malaysian companies.
“The Indonesian government continues to work hard to address this (karhutla) issue,” said Siti Nurbaya.
— Bernama
