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WORLDWIDE FOREST/BIODIVERSITY CAMPAIGN NEWS

Bush Fires Spread on Indonesian Part of Borneo

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Forest Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises

http://forests.org/

2/21/98

OVERVIEW, SOURCE & COMMENTARY by EE

The bush fires of Indonesia continue only slightly abated. While the

official spin regarding blame continues to target peasants and

agriculture, the intensive harvest to which Indonesia's tropical

forests have been subjected provides an ecologically diminished

landscape that is conducive to fire. Industrial forestry inevitably

destroys rainforest ecosystems. Should the world community decide

that maintenance of rainforest ecosystem and biodiversity values is

important (even critical), there seems little choice but to exclude

all but the most benign, small-scale community forest operations from

all remaining primary forests. At least until someone illustrates a

management regime that is "sustainable" by any definition other than

"sustained yields" (whatever that means). If remaining primary

forests are deemed critical, rich countries should be willing to pay

for their preservation--and its citizenry should refrain from buying

forest products made from old-growth.

g.b.

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Title: Bush fires spread on Indonesian part of Borneo

Source: Reuters

Status: Copyrighted, contact source to reprint

Date: February 16, 1998

JAKARTA, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Bush fires are spreading on the Indonesian

part of the island of Borneo, with at least 895 "hot spots" reported

as of Sunday.

Forestry Minister Djamaluddin Suryohadikusumo was quoted by the

official Antara news agency on Monday as saying there were 895 fires

recorded in east Kalimantan province as of Sunday night, compared with

618 on Saturday.

"I have informed the environment minister about this development,"

said Suryohadikusumo, adding that the government had sent in aircraft

to try to put out the fires on the island, which Indonesia shares with

Malaysia and Brunei.

The outbreaks threaten the return of smog which blanketed a large

swathe of Southeast Asia last year, causing widespread health and

environmental problems.

Environmental experts said the fires were linked to the reduced

monsoon rains over the 5,000 km (3,000 mile) archipelago caused by the

El Nino weather phenomenon, an upswelling of warmed water in the

Pacific Ocean which affects global weather patterns.

Suryohadikusumo said the fires could have been caused by land clearing

by farmers and plantation owners.

An official at the forest coordinating bureau said on Monday that at

least 53 hot spots had been recorded on the island of Sumatra. "The

fires are still going on in Sumatra and Kalimantan," he said without

giving details.

Last year's fires were blamed largely on peasant farmers burning off

land and plantation companies clearing bush for cultivation.

The government has banned clearing land by fire, but some

environmental experts have said the authorities are in a worse

position this year to enforce regulations and fight the fires due to

country's most serious economic crisis in decades.

Forest specialists fear huge peat bogs on Kalimantan and Sumatra could

catch fire again. The bogs were responsible for some of the worst smog

last year.

On Thursday, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) said a

regional action plan to fight the smog would be ready by mid-1998.

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