Antara News·Indonesia·Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at 11:00 AM

Govt seals 50 companies over forest, land fires across eight provinces

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Prisca Triferna Violleta, Yashinta Difa

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Environment Ministry has sealed off approximately 50 companies operating across eight provinces in Indonesia, after identifying forest and land fire hotspots within their concession areas.

Deputy Minister of Environment Diaz Hendropriyono stated that the sealing serves as a direct law enforcement measure to address suspected violations related to forest and land fires.

"We are monitoring these companies, and 50 have now been sealed off. This means fires occurred there; if company involvement is confirmed, sanctions will be imposed," Diaz noted in a statement on Wednesday.

The announcement follows an on-site inspection in Samarinda, East Kalimantan, on Monday (September 14), where officials reviewed emergency response management and fire monitoring protocols.

During the visit, Diaz emphasized the need to synchronize inter-agency monitoring data to improve firefighting efforts. He observed that various response agencies were utilizing data from three different satellites.

"It was noted that ASEAN uses only one satellite—NOAA-20—to monitor smoke from land fires; this serves as a lesson for Indonesia to establish data consistency. Once the data is synchronized, we will certainly conduct further field verification and take appropriate action," Diaz said.

Additionally, during his visit to East Kalimantan, the deputy minister coordinated with private entities, securing their commitment to build borewells in water-scarce areas to support suppression efforts.

Diaz reiterated that government policy remains firm under Presidential Instruction Number 11 of 2026, which bans burning on peatlands, and Minister of Environment’s Circular Letter Number 16 of 2026, which requires regional governments to issue a moratorium on land clearing by fire.

"With all these measures, hopefully the handling of forest and land fires will proceed smoothly," Diaz added.

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