Unraveling the Traces of Forest and Land Fires in Indonesia: From Prevention Efforts to Law Enforcement
In order to celebrate the 62nd anniversary of IPB University, the Center for Disaster Studies (PSB) held a national webinar entitled “Unraveling the Traces of Forest and Land Fires in Indonesia: From Prevention Efforts to Law Enforcement”.
“The purpose of this webinar is to identify challenges and opportunities in the process of enforcing forest and land fire laws, from initial detection to court decisions, in order to strengthen the environmental justice system in Indonesia,” said Prof Bambang Hero Saharjo, Chairmam of PSB IPB University.
As a follow-up, policy and regulatory recommendations will be formulated to strengthen cross-sector coordination and improve the effectiveness of enforcement against karhutla perpetrators, both individuals and corporations.
“It is hoped that this meeting can increase synergy between academics, law enforcement, government, and the community in strengthening the capacity, transparency, and accountability of karhutla law enforcement to prevent similar incidents in the future,” hoped Prof Bambang.
The speakers were Prof Bambang Hero Saharjo, Dr Dodi Kurniawan (Director of Dispute Resolution, Ministry of Environment/KLH), Guswanto, M.Si (Deputy for Meteorology, Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency/BMKG), Bambang Surya Putra, MKom (Head of Operations Control Center/Director of Equipment Logistics, National Disaster Management Agency/BNPB) and Ir Thomas Nifinluri, MSc (Director of Forest Fire Control, Ministry of Forestry/Kemenhut).
The webinar was attended by 250 participants who stayed until the end of the event. They came from various related agencies, including KLH, Kemenhut, Manggala Agni, the Law Enforcement Agency (Gakkum), universities, and others.
In his speech, Prof Ernan Rustiadi, Vice Rector of IPB University for Research, Innovation, and Agromaritime Development, stated, “Various control activities, ranging from prevention, extinguishing, and post-fire handling, still allow forest and land fires to occur.”
In fact, he continued, forest and land fire control actions have been carried out by various related agencies such as the Ministry of Forestry, BNPB, and others, including local governments and even the private sector. Law enforcement efforts by the Ministry of Environment and the restoration of burned land have also been carried out.
“All of this leaves the public wondering about the current state of forest and land fire control in Indonesia. Hopefully, this webinar can explore more in-depth issues regarding forest and land fire control efforts, from prevention to law enforcement,” said Prof Ernan. (*/Rz) (IAAS/LAN)
