Banjarbaru, S. Kalimantan (ANTARA) – Indonesian Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka issued a public apology on Thursday as toxic haze and lingering forest fires continue to blanket parts of Kalimantan.
“We apologize to the residents of Kalimantan for the current situation,” Gibran said during an inspection of the Forest and Land Fire Monitoring Post in Guntung Damar, Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan.
He stated that while joint task forces conduct daily containment operations, fire hotspots continue to emerge due to severe underground peatland fires.
To combat persistent blazes in South Kalimantan, the Vice President called for specialized subterranean wetting techniques in addition to surface-level firefighting.
He also instructed local authorities to ensure that irrigation canals and water retention basins remain unblocked to supply ongoing suppression efforts.
Data from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) and the Forestry Ministry’s SiPongi platform indicate that the total burned area reached over 202,000 hectares by mid-August 2026, with July alone accounting for approximately 95,000 hectares.
In response, BNPB has deployed 43,481 personnel and 55 aircraft across six priority provinces in Kalimantan and Sumatra to contain fires that have scorched over 72,000 hectares.
According to the EU’s Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, Indonesian wildfire emissions reached 19.7 million metric tons of CO between September 1 and 7—accounting for over a third of global fire emissions during that period.
The air quality across major parts of Kalimantan has deteriorated to catastrophic, hazardous levels, according to Environment and Forestry Ministry data.
The ministry’s Air Pollution Standard Index (ISPU) reveals that Central Kalimantan is the most severely affected region in the country, with pollution levels in the capital of Palangkaraya soaring between 703 and 780, while the city of Sampit peaked at a staggering index of 1,166—far exceeding the official hazardous threshold of 300.
West Kalimantan is also experiencing severe environmental distress, with capital city Pontianak recording index figures between 394 and 593—forcing local authorities to issue strict health directives, mandate N95 mask usage, and suspend face-to-face schooling for millions of students.
The resulting transboundary smog has also degraded air quality across several Indonesian provinces and spread into neighboring Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei.
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Translator: Firman, Yashinta Difa
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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