SUMATRA: FOREST FIRES IN RIAU DISRUPT LIFE AND IMPACT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 001339 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR OES/ENRC, EAP/MTS, EAP/RSP DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS AID E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EAGR EAIR SENV ID SUBJECT: SUMATRA: FOREST FIRES IN RIAU DISRUPT LIFE AND IMPACT REGION REF: JAKARTA 1330 ¶1. (SBU) Summary. Increasingly serious levels of haze and smoke resulting from forest fires mainly concentrated in Riau Province, Sumatra, have had a severe impact on daily life in the province during the first half of August. The smoke and haze caused by the fires have created flight diversions and delays, school closings, and packed hospitals with respiratory ailments mainly among children. The 2009 Summer fire season represents the most serious levels of smoke and haze since 2006 in the province and has impacted air quality in Malaysia and Singapore. Political will in the province to counter those responsible remains weak and information on the perpetrators continues to be unclear. End Summary. Impact on Flights, Schools, and Hospitals -------------- ¶2. (U) From August 1 through August 10 Riau airport authorities report an average of 17 flights per day in and out of Pekanbaru, capital of Riau Province, have been delayed due to haze and low visibility. Several flights have also been diverted to Polonia Medan International Airport in North Sumatra and the smaller airport at the coastal port of Dumai has also been affected. The haze mainly affects morning flights and tends to clear up during the day, but is causing significant disruption and delays in flight schedules. ¶3. (U) School officials in Riau report that at the end of last week, on August 7 and 8 eleven of twelve subdistrict schools in the District of Pelalawan, heavily affected by smoke and haze from forest fires, were forced to close. They have since reopened. No provincial-level order has been issued regarding school closures but local officials are monitoring air quality. ¶4. (U) Riau Province health officials report a sharp increase in respiratory ailments in the province, mainly among children under 10 years of age. While still treatable as outpatients up to this time, provincial authorities are expecting the distribution of thousands of masks in coming days for Riau residents. Hospitals have been able to cope with increased service demand thus far, but are also carefully monitoring the spike in illness. Conflicting Reports on Responsibility -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The yearly blame game regarding who is responsible for the hundreds of "hot spots" around Riau has again gone into high gear. Local environmental NGO's Jikalahari and Walhi blame Sinar Mas Group's Asia Pulp and Paper for a full 25 percent of the fires. Walhi is also focusing on a law from 1990 which makes it illegal to expand plantations on land where peat runs more than three meters deep. Chevron's local subsidiary in Riau meanwhile is also monitoring air quality and indicates that while the situation is improving after recent rains many public schools near their Duri camp operation were also closed. Chevron, who is not involved in land clearance or accused in any of these fires, believes that the main culprits behind the forest fires are small landowners around large plantations who generally burn one hectare or less of land but when multiplied by thousands of smallholders this clearly becomes a major, yearly issue. ¶6. (SBU) Pekanbaru's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Body (BKMG) reported to the media on August 9 they were monitoring 110 major fire points that day throughout the province. Statistics for the first half of 2009 compiled by local NGO Jikalahari show a total of 4,800 fires throughout Riau during the period. In conversations with the Indonesian Palm Oil Producer's Association on Medan on August 10 and previous talks July 31 with Conservation Manager for Belgian-owned PT Tolan Tigga also based in Medan the industry claims that land bordering their estates held by smallholders is often burned as small operators lack the means for other types of clearance. ¶7. (SBU) While acknowledging it may look like their estates are to blame, industry representatives are firm in denying responsibility and assert with some credence that their business model is not based on slash and burn expansion activity. Nevertheless, large plantation expansion including infrastructure like roads and processing services used by smallholders, feeds into the overall incentives to clear forest. The reliance of smallholders on large plantations to buy and process their product creates a symbiotic relationship linked to the forest fire problem making the large plantation companies indirectly complicit. ¶8. (U) Rachmad Witoelar, Indonesia's Environment Minister, was also in Riau on Saturday August 8 along with his Malaysian colleague Dato' Douglas Unggah Embas to distribute air pollution monitoring equipment provide by the Malaysian government. He was quoted by local media as saying "Regional government, in this case the Governor, Bupati (District Chief) and Mayor are still soft and not JAKARTA 00001339 002 OF 002 optimal to overcome this problem." The Malaysian Environment Minister called on Malaysian companies, who have heavily invested in Riau Province, to respect Indonesian law with regard to land clearance methods. Little Local Political Will/Praying for Rain -------------- ¶9. (SBU) The Singaporean Consul based in Pekanbaru, Riau met with Medan Pol/Econoff on August 9 in Medan and reported that both Riau Governor Rusli Zainal and the Mayor of Pekanbaru have dismal reputations for combating illegal logging, burning, and expansion of plantations in Riau. While not directly complicit, he indicated that they create an environment of impunity with regard to the burning methods and uncontrolled expansion of plantation operations and added his belief that they probably receive indirect benefits in the form of corrupt payments from large abusers. ¶10. (SBU) Governor Rusli Zainal has faced longstanding allegations of his support for illegal logging and turning a blind eye to environmental damage since his time as District Chief in Riau. While never proven, his current lack of action and perceived lack of political will observed by everyone in Riau bodes ill for efforts to rein in the forest fire problems in the province. Despite welcome and successful U.S. Army Pacific-led Disaster Prevention training (reftel) focused on forest fires conducted in Riau between July 27 and July 31 the resources and political will remain lacking to affect real change in this yearly cycle. ¶11. (SBU) Only five perpetrators have been detained by police during the current fire season and the Singaporean Consul told Medan Pol/Econoff that suspects are routinely released after payments are made to police making even apprehension of suspects totally ineffective in preventing the spread of these fires. Governor Zainal has publicly asked the frustrated residents of Riau to hold a mass prayer for rain on Friday August 14, claiming a lack of funds and local resources to combat the problem. Several days of rain have tamped down the fires and effect of the smog and haze early the week of August 10 but dry periods in the coming weeks could see recent problems return or magnify. HUME