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Officials rely on cloud seeding to combat forest fires
Despite the ongoing forest fires, recent air quality measurements conducted by the BNPB in all of the affected provinces showed a reading of PM 2.5, which falls under the category of “good”.
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Firefighters battle a peatland fire in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra, on Sept. 23, 2019. (AFP/Abdul Qodir)
Air quality in a number of areas affected by forest and land fires has improved as a result of a declining number of hot spots in Sumatra and Kalimantan, according a National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) official.
BNPB acting spokesperson Agus Wibowo said there had been a reduction in hot spots in Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan. However, the number of hot spots in South Kalimantan is still growing and remains the worst among all the provinces.
“National Institute of Aeronautics and Space [Lapan] satellite surveillance shows that air quality has improved because there has been a decrease in hot spots in Sumatra and Kalimantan,” Agus said at the BNPB building in East Jakarta on Monday.
Despite the ongoing forest fires, recent air quality measurements conducted by the BNPB in all of the affected provinces showed a reading of PM 2.5, which falls under the category of “good”.
Based on BNPB data on Monday, the total number of hot spots in the country is 673. South Kalimantan has the highest number with 141, followed by Central Kalimantan and South Sumatra with 63 each and Jambi with 15. Riau and West Kalimantan currently have none.
BNPB head Doni Monardo previously underlined the effectiveness of artificial weather modification, or cloud seeding, compared to the conventional water bombing method.
