Jakarta (VNA) – Forest fires and deforestation in Indonesia declined drastically in the last 10 years, Minister of Environment and Forestry Siti Nurbaya Bakar said on September 29.
According to Bakar, the forest fire area in Indonesia declined from 2.6 million ha in 2015 to 200,000 ha in 2022.
She said Indonesia has handled this issue with integrated prevention such as timely hotspot monitoring, weather modification, patrol and community participation, and law enforcement.
Regarding deforestation, the minister said that Indonesia has been able to reduce it significantly, from 1.09 million ha in 2014-2015 to 100,000 ha in 2023.
In addition, plastic waste volume also decreased thanks to the implementation of circular economy. The amount of marine plastic waste declined significantly from 438,000 tonnes in 2018 to 339,000 tonnes in 2023.
Indonesia is trying its best to tackle the issue of plastic waste in the sea and manage it with circular economy.
Earlier, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) of Indonesia said it will closely monitor areas with high risks of forest fires. The BNPB has used aircraft and helicopters for patrols and waterbombing as well as water pumps for land spraying./.
