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El Nino unleashes fears a new haze will engulf the region

Drought and illegal forest fires in Indonesia threaten local crop failure and return of smog that triggered a diplomatic crisis.

Joko Widodo in 2015 inspects a peatland clearing engulfed by fire. Picture: AFP
Joko Widodo in 2015 inspects a peatland clearing engulfed by fire. Picture: AFP

El Nino-triggered drought and illegal forest fires in Indonesia threaten not only local crop failure this year but the return of the haze that engulfed neighbours Singapore and Malaysia, triggering a regional diplomatic crisis last decade.

Seven Indonesian provinces – mostly palm oil producing areas on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo – have been placed under emergency alerts amid rising worries about forest and peatland fires in the coming months.

El Nino is a climate pattern originating in the Pacific Ocean, marked by above-average sea surface temperatures. It typically brings hot and dry conditions to Southeast Asia, in contrast to La Nina’s wetter and cooler weather.

Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) said last weekend several districts of Central Java, the country’s main rice-producing region, were already in drought.

“Drought has been experienced by residents of Kendalsari Village, Kemalang Sub-district, Klaten Regency, where 4360 residents are facing difficulties in obtaining clean water,” BNPB spokesman Abdul Muhari said.

In at least three other Central Java districts local authorities have had to send in tankers to supply villagers with fresh water.

With the rice production season running from June to October, most of Central Java has a low chance of rainfall, with predictions of less than 90 per cent or below 50mm until next month, according to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).

BMKG forecasts that next month drought will have expanded from Java to the southern part of Sumatra. By August, almost all of Indonesia will be suffering from low rainfall

The National Research and Innovation Agency predicts the drought will slash rice production this year by a million tonnes.

Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo established a quick response taskforce to anticipate El Nino by ensuring better water management and offering drought-tolerant rice seedlings, but President Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, took no chances and insisted on the importation of two million tonnes of rice.

“The State Logistics Agency and Food Agency are preparing themselves by strengthening its rice reserves. We shouldn’t be in a situation where, during a long dry season, we are confused about buying rice from Thailand, Vietnam, India or Pakistan, only to find that there is no supply,” Jokowi said.

On Saturday, 132ha of forest were burned in South Kalimantan, Borneo, affecting six districts and a city, state news agency Antara reported. Local police said they were investigating alleged illegal land burning.

According to the Indonesian government’s monitoring dashboard, more than 28,000ha of forest has burned so far this year, releasing more than 2.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide.

The 2015 forest fire raged through 2.6 million hectares in Sumatra and Kalimantan, costing $US16bn in Indonesia and resulting in 40,000 to 100,000 additional deaths in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

The annual problem continued to appear throughout Jokowi’s first term, embarrassing him during visits to Malaysia and Singapore. Forest lost to fire has declined from 1.7 million hectares in 2019 to 204,000ha last year.

But the Singapore Institute of International Affairs said it had raised a red alert over the likelihood of a severe haze affecting Southeast Asia.

“There has been a positive tone of co-operation between ASEAN countries on the haze, and between governments and the private sector, which has improved in the past few years. But we are now facing a time of stress testing. It remains to be seen if this co-ordination can be maintained in the coming months,” SIIA chairman Simon Tay said.

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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/el-nino-unleashes-fears-a-new-haze-will-engulf-the-region/news-story/f0701135ec1b6a0cf4494b780af4d3bb