Indonesia's Forest and Land Fire Area Increased by 19% in 2021

The area affected by forest and land fires (karhutla) in Indonesia in 2021 increased compared to 2020. Based on data from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK), the area of forest and land burned in Indonesia reached 354,582 hectares (ha), a 19.4% increase compared to 296,942 ha in 2020.

KLHK recorded that East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) was the province most affected by karhutla in 2021, with 137,297 ha. West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) was second, with 100,908 ha affected.

Meanwhile, Banten, DKI Jakarta, and Yogyakarta Special Region were not affected by karhutla. The area affected in Bali was only 3 ha throughout last year.

Cumulatively from 2016 to 2021, 3.43 million ha of forest and land have burned in Indonesia. The worst year for karhutla was 2019, which saw 1.6 million ha of forest and land burn.

Looking at the trend, karhutla in Indonesia tends to fluctuate. In 2016, 438,363.19 ha were affected. In 2017, this decreased to 165,483.92 ha, a 62% drop.

Then in 2018, it increased by 219% to 529,266.64 ha. The following year it increased again by 211% to 1.6 million ha, but then decreased by 82% in 2020.

Forest and land fire disasters recur annually in Indonesia. This causes environmental damage and economic losses. Therefore, preventive and mitigation efforts are needed, especially in areas frequently affected.