Jakarta (ANTARA) – Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said Indonesia was stepping up weather-modification operations to support wildfire suppression in several regions, including Central Kalimantan.
The operations are scheduled for October 15-16, with aircraft departing from Syamsudin Noor Airport in Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, he said in a statement issued in Jakarta on Thursday.
The plan reflects poor visibility at Tjilik Riwut Airport in Palangka Raya and Iskandar Airport in Pangkalan Bun, which has prevented weather-modification aircraft from taking off.
Authorities will instead dispatch the aircraft from Syamsudin Noor Airport in Banjarmasin.
“Cloud-seeding flights are planned for Oct. 15-16, and we hope conditions favor raincloud formation. Aircraft unable to take off at Tjilik Riwut or Pangkalan Bun will operate from Syamsudin Noor,” Raja Juli said.
Besides cloud-seeding, the government is preparing to redeploy water-bombing helicopters. Six are currently in Central Kalimantan, including at Pangkalan Bun and Tjilik Riwut.
However, helicopter operations have been hampered by visibility below the minimum required for flight.
“Visibility must reach at least 5,000 meters for them to fly,” Raja Juli said.
As an alternative, the government will try moving helicopters from South Kalimantan to Kuala Pembuang in Seruyan, where visibility is better.
Officials are also considering redeploying helicopters from areas where wildfires are easing, including Riau.
“Moving helicopters to Kuala Pembuang may be better than operating from Syamsudin Noor. We will also water-bomb Sungai Perlu and Sungai Tanjung Rengas and conduct ground sweeps,” Raja Juli said.
Raja Juli said aerial operations would be coordinated with stepped-up ground efforts.
The military, police, Manggala Agni firefighting crews, the Forestry Ministry, regional disaster agency, volunteers, and community fire-watch groups will work together to tackle fires in and around Tanjung Puting, he said.
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Translator: Arnidhya NZ, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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