Nurfika Osman

East Java’s Raden Soeryo Park Suffers Record Forest Fire Damage

Forest fires destroyed more than 600 hectares of Indonesia's Raden Soeryo Grand Forest Park in East Java between July and October, an official said on Wednesday, and the record toll is likely to climb further as fires continue to burn out of control.

“Last year, between July and October, forest fires destroyed 115 hectares. This year’s fires have been the biggest in comparison to previous years,” said Hariono, the park’s coordinator.

Hariono said that in the higher regions of the park, also known as Tahura, “nothing green can be seen anymore.”

The park, located on the slopes of Mt. Welirang in Pasuruan, covers an area of 5,663 hectares. It is accessible from the cities of Malang, Mojokerto and Jombang, as well as Pasuruan, Hariono said.

He said that park officials were continuing to coordinate with community groups and local forestry offices in the four cities to battle the blazes.

“Strong winds, the large distances between villages and the areas on fire, the lack of water sources and a lack of manpower ready to help curb the fires have all contributed to the rapid spread of the fires,” he said.

Agus Supriyanto, from the Pasuruan Forestry Office, said that he hoped more aid would arrive from the provincial government.

“Sure, we want fire-fighting helicopters,” Supriyanto said.

He noted that the park was open to the public and therefore it was hard to control who entered.

The dry season and human activity were the main causes of the fires, according to both Supriyanto and Hariono.

“We can only count on the rainy season, which we hope will come soon,” Supriyanto said.

Forest fires are an annual problem across the archipelago, and the new state minister for the environment, Gusti Muhammad Hatta, has made some forceful statements on what needs to be done to protect the country’s forests.

He has, among other things, demanded the Forestry Ministry stop converting natural forests into production forests.

Government data show that on average the country lost 1.09 million hectares of forest annually between 2000 and 2006.

In his first speech as state minister, Gusti said that he had sent a message to forestry officials telling them to keep their hands off protected forest areas.

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