The forest and peat land fires and smog, billed the worst in Indonesian history, still dominated media headlines this week, with thousand of hot spots covering Sumatra and Kalimantan. At least 19 people in Sumatra and Kalimantan have died, and mostly children, have been hospitalized because of severe respiratory ilness cause by the haze. According to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), the ongoing haze crisis has resulted in more than 500.000 people in six provinces - Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, and South Kalimantan - sufering from respiratory infections.

    As evidence indicates that most hot spots are related to oil and palm and pulpwood plantations, President has instructed the Forestry and Environment Ministry to stop assuing new permits for peat land cultivation for monoculture restore damage peat land and review all peat land licenses that have been issued. Put bluntly, companies can no longer convert active forests and deep peat or any peat area into monoculture plantations, such as acacia for pulp and oil palm plantations.

Recent research by forest scientists at the Bogor, West Java-based Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) found that peat swamps in their natural state are resistant to fire bcause they are wet underground, but they can be highly flammable when they dry out and are degraded.

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