Indonesia: 7,745 suffer from acute respiratory tract infection in Pekanbaru

Antara 26 Aug 19;

The Pekanbaru City Health Office reported that the number of people suffering from acute respiratory tract infection in the Riau provincial capital between July and August 2019 reached 7,745.

"The figure is based on reports from all public health service posts (Puskesmas) in Pekanbaru City, comprising 3,540 cases recorded in July and 4,205 cases in August," acting chief of the Pekanbaru City Health Office, Muhammad Amin, said in Pekanbaru on Monday.

The increase in the number of those suffering from acute respiratory tract infection in the past couple of months is a result of the haze from land and forest fires in a number of districts and cities in Riau province, as well as in neighboring provinces.

However, the increase is relatively small, at 900 per month compared to more than 3 thousand in August 2018 when no haze was found, he said.

"In August 2019, the number has already reached more than 4 thousand. This means that not all those suffering from acute respiratory tract infection were affected only by the haze," he said.

Visibility in Pekanbaru was curtailed to 1.5 kilometers (km) last Saturday at 8 a.m. local time owing to smog emanating from forest fires in Pelalawan District in particular.

The haze arose from Pelalawan where 102 hotspots were recorded in the morning, Nia Fadhila, analyst at the Pekanbaru meteorology, climatology and geophysics station, stated last Saturday.

Pelalawan is located in the south of Pekanbaru, with the wind blowing from the southeast to the southwest, she explained.

Executive General Manager of SSK II airport, Yogi Prasetyo, noted that in spite of the haze, operations at the Sultan Syarik Kasim II (SSK II) International Airport in Pekanbaru were continuing as usual.

The local residents of Pekanbaru wore masks while venturing outdoors since the city’s air quality remained at an unhealthy level.

Reporter: Frislidia/Suharto
Editor: Rahmad Nasution

West Kalimantan police arrest 52 suspects in forest fire cases
Antara 27 Aug 19;

Pontianak, W Kalimantan (ANTARA) - The West Kalimantan Police arrested 52 suspects in land and forest fire cases in the province, West Kalimantan Police Chief Insp. Gen. Didi Haryono stated.

"A total of 52 suspects were arrested in 44 cases comprising 43 individual cases and one involving a corporation," Haryono stated here on Tuesday.

He affirmed that the police will adopt stringent legal measures against those involved in land and forest fires.

The Environment and Forestry Ministry has revoked the licenses of 10 plantation and industrial forestry companies where some hotspots were found.

On several instances, West Kalimantan Governor Sutarmidji has warned of suspension of permits of plantation or industrial forestry (HTI) companies found to intentionally burn their land concession areas or allowed it to occur on their land, thereby harming the environment.

"I will take stern measures against plantation and HTI companies whose concession lands are still on fire. We will suspend the permit, and the land could not be used for five years," he noted.

He also cautioned of revoking the licenses if companies were proven to have deliberately burned land or allowed the fire to ravage the area.

The Ministry of Environment and Forestry had earlier confirmed of having investigated 24 firms in connection with their alleged involvement in land and forest fires in certain areas in Indonesia, of which 14 are based in West Kalimantan.

Reporter: Andilala, Sri Haryati
Editor: Fardah Assegaf

Cloud seeding 'ineffective' in current weather conditions, says S. Sumatra official
Yulia Savitri The Jakarta Post 27 Aug 19;

A toll road officer manages traffic on Monday, Aug. 5, 2019 amid the thick, yellowish haze in Pulau Semembu village of Ogan Ilir regency, South Sumatra. The province is experiencing increased haze from forest fires. (JP/Ahmad Rizki Prabu)
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Amid the current strong wind and dry air conditions, inducing rain through cloud seeding may not be effective in combating haze from wildfires in South Sumatra, a meteorology official has said.

Tropical Storm Bailu in the South China Sea had reduced water vapor in the air and rain cloud formation, said Beny Setiaji, the head of observation and information at the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin (SMB) II meteorological station in Palembang.

“Based on the research we once conducted with Sriwijaya University, weather modification methods to make artificial rain will not be effective in the current condition,” Beny said.

Although the storm was expected to weaken on Aug. 27 to 29, strong winds and dry air existed above the clouds. Even though cumulus and cumulonimbus clouds could still form, it would be difficult to make artificial rain, he said.

Clouds were seeded usually from noon onwards, whereas rain clouds generally formed over just one hour to 1.5 hours, said Beny, adding that if the cloud seeding was successful, the resulting rain would only last during the several hours it took to seed the clouds.

“So if a downpour occurs in the evening and lasts a long time, it can be assured that the rain was not due to [any] weather modification,” he said.

Thick smog has engulfed Palembang as a result of increased hotspots as well as wildfires in nearby regencies and cities. The smog has reportedly decreased visibility and started disrupting daily activities in the provincial capital over the weekend, including around the Musi River.

The SMB II meteorological station recorded on Saturday reduced visibility of only 700 meters in the city because of the haze.

Although the reduced visibility did not disrupt flights, it disrupted the city's daily activities, especially for people using land transportation.

“This condition may continue throughout the dry season in line with the occurrence of forest fires,” said Beny.

He has called on residents to be cautious when driving on roads or traveling along rivers, and to avoid taking the first scheduled flights of the day, between 4 a.m. and 7 p.m. local time.

Meanwhile, emergency mitigation head Ansori of the South Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) said the province had so far recorded 236 forest fires covering 1,675 hectares, including peatland fires.

By Friday, local authorities had conducted a total of 263 water-bombing operations and used 1,052 million liters of water in its efforts to extinguish the fires and to reduce haze. (afr)