9,310 Hotspots Indicating Forest and Land Fires Detected in September 2019

The area affected by forest and land fires (karhutla) in Indonesia from January 1st to September 15th, 2019, reached 328,722 hectares. This figure is equivalent to 64% of the total area affected in the previous year (510,564 hectares). The ongoing fires are disrupting daily activities and public health, particularly on the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan. Furthermore, the smoke from these fires has impacted neighboring Malaysia.

Based on data from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry's SiPongi Forest and Land Fire Monitoring System, 9,310 hotspots were detected between September 1st and 16th. This data is derived from imagery from LAPAN's Terra/Aqua satellites, with a confidence level of ?80%. The number of hotspots has surged by more than 170% compared to the previous month and has nearly tripled compared to the same period last year.

The highest number of karhutla hotspots in September 2019 was detected in Central Kalimantan, reaching 3,354. West Kalimantan recorded the second highest number with 1,940 hotspots, followed by Jambi with 1,250 hotspots. Riau detected 634 hotspots. A total of 14,510 hotspots were detected between January 1st and September 16th.