2026 Indonesia wildfires

Red sun on the sky covered by smoke haze in Kalimantan.

The 2026 Indonesia wildfires refer to a series of severe wildfires that occurred in Indonesia during 2026. Data from Indonesian Ministry of Forestry, cited by Reuters, showed that 107,465 hectares (265,552 acres) of land were affected by fires from January through June 2026, an increase of 110% compared with the same period in 2023, when El Niño last affected Indonesia.[1] This figure was updated on August 18, with Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni stating that 202,000 hectares of forests and land had burned across Indonesia.[2]

Forest fire started in Berau, East Kalimantan

It is later identified that Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, and South Kalimantan as priority provinces for fire prevention and response. Fires were also reported in other parts of Indonesia, including Java, Papua, and the Lesser Sunda Islands. According to data from the Ministry of Forestry's Sipongi system as of 20 August 2026, the following are the ten provinces with the largest areas affected by forest and land fires:[3]

Province Area (in hectares)
West Kalimantan 38,310.86
South Papua 25,838.53
East Nusa Tenggara 19,565.16
West Nusa Tenggara 17,406.46
Riau 15,738.92
Maluku 14,677.00
East Java 10,835.28
East Kalimantan 8,019.63
South Kalimantan 7,634.46
Riau Islands 5,760.90

Cause

Choking smoke haze hit Landasan Ulin in Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan

In general, human activity has been identified as a major reason behind these fires. The developing Godzilla El Niño and the dry season are believed to not directly causes the fires but rather may act as catalysts by reducing rainfall, thus drying vegetation and peatlands. Large-scale forest clearing for plantation and mining activities is believed to have left the land extremely dry and prone to fire. The use of fire for land clearence is often considered the most efficient method, but in practice it causes the greatest economic and environmental losses.[2]

Another plantation malpractice, involving the construction of drainage canals, is the main cause peatlands, that naturally retain water, to dry out. This makes underground smoldering fires difficult to extinguish and creates the potential for recurring fires over the long term. Illegal logging, which damages vegetation cover and further dries out the soil, combined with prolonged dry seasons, can significantly increase the risk of fires.[4]

Human activities that involved open fire in peatland, mostly land clearing for agricultural or mining purposes, are suspected to be the main driven factor of the wildfires. This made worst by the dry season caused by the developing 2026–2027 El Niño event.[2] This deforestation method is considered to be the most efficient even though it possessed to most economic and environmental risks.[5] Furthermore, drainage canal for palm oil plantation forces the water-storing wet peatland to be dried up. This increases risk of recurring fire in the long run as the subsurface fire from burning peat ember is notoriously hard to extinguish.[5]

Walhi (The Indonesian Forum for the Environment) reported that 74 percent of the hotspots in Kalimantan were located within corporate concession areas, specifically 10,739 hotspots in oil palm plantation Right to Cultivate (HGU) areas, 7,880 hotspots in mining concessions, and 6,905 hotspots in Forest Utilization Business Permits (PBPH) areas.[6] Meanwhile, National Geographic Indonesia reported that the conflict of interest between business and political entities causes land fires to recur continuously, making the issue difficult to resolved comprehensively.[7]

Papua

As per 20 August 2026, 25,838.53 hectares of land has been burned in South Papua.[3] Massive land clearing for National Strategic Projects, that includes food estate, palm oil plantation, and mining, is criticized to be the driving factor of wildfires in Papua.[8][9][10]

Kalimantan

Morning sky in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan.

In July 2026, 200 fire spots is confirmed in 12 regencies in West Kalimantan that burned 28,680.47 hectares of land.[11]

East Kalimantan recorded 1,287.9 hectares of land burned per 11 August from 218 individual events.[12]

South Kalimantan recorded 3,387 hectares of land burned per 11 August.[13]

In 17 August, Central Kalimantan reported 3,657 hectares of forest and land burned spread across 570 hotspots.[14][15]

Lesser Sunda Islands

West Nusa Tenggara reported 8,895.43 hectares affected by wildfires per 20 July.[16]

Sulawesi

Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency classified fire risk in Central Sulawesi at mid to very high risk along 9–15 August period.[17]

Java

Central Java reported 166 instances of wildfires that affected 306 hectares coverage along 2026.[18]

On 3 August, wildfires detected at Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park. The fire was burning for several days and burned 1,120 hectares of land.[19] The government announced that the fire was only fully extinguished on 14 August, while the national park was opened to the public again on 20 August.[20]

Sumatra

Across January to August, wildfires swept 15,477 hectares of land in Riau. The vast majority of land burned was peatland.[21]

South Sumatra reported 1,382.4 hectares of land burned from January to April.[22]

Jambi City Haze 2026. Photo taken near the TVRI Jambi transmitter.

Jambi reported 619.75 hectares of land affected by wildfires per 16 August.

On 25–26 January, 2,685.43 hectares of protected conservation area was burned in Way Kambas National Park jungle and rehabilitation zone. The wildfires was recurring until July in at least 20 fire spots.[23]

References

  1. ↑ "Karhutla 2026 Capai 202 Ribu Hektare, Menhut Soroti El Nino Datang Lebih Cepat". kumparan (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  2. 1 2 3 Teresia, Ananda (2026-08-11). "Indonesia races to contain fires as haze spreads across region". Reuters. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  3. 1 2 "Indikasi Luas Kebakaran". sipongi.gakkum.kehutanan.go.id. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  4. ↑ Pamungkas, Sigit.74% Hotspot Kalimantan Ada di Konsesi Perusahaan, Ini Kata Walhi Kalteng". detik.com retrieved 2026 Augsut, 21st
  5. 1 2 Redaksi. "Penyebab Kalimantan Sering Kebakaran Hutan Parah, Ini Kata Peneliti". CNBC Indonesia (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  6. ↑ Pamungkas, Sigit. "74% Hotspot Kalimantan Ada di Konsesi Perusahaan, Ini Kata Walhi Kalteng". detikKalimantan (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-21..
  7. ↑ Utomo Priyambodo dan Ade S (2026-08-22). "Indonesia Membara: Mengapa Kebakaran Hutan Terus Berulang?". National Geographic. Retrieved 2026-08-22.
  8. ↑ Ansori, Sofyan (2026-08-05). "Mengulang pola di Sumatra dan Kalimantan, Papua Selatan tunjukkan gejala jadi episentrum kebakaran baru". The Conversation. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  9. ↑ Maulida, Syifa (2026-08-20). "Karhutla 2026 Meluas: Konsesi Perusahaan Dominasi Titik Panas". Magdalene.co. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  10. ↑ "Mayoritas Titik Api Papua Selatan Berada di Wilayah Food Estate dan Konsesi Perusahaan PSN". WALHI. 2026-07-15. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  11. ↑ Sucipto (2026-07-30). "Kalbar Catat Titik Panas Terbanyak, Karhutla Banyak di Area Perusahaan". Kompas.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  12. ↑ "Api Mengamuk di Kaltim, 1.287 Hektare Hutan dan Lahan Hangus Terbakar | Katakaltim.com | Membaca Untuk Negeri". Kata Kaltim. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  13. ↑ TV, Metro. "Karhutla Kalsel Hanguskan 3.387 Hektare, 5.695 Titik Api Terpantau". www.metrotvnews.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  14. ↑ "Karhutla Kalteng Hanguskan 3.657 Hektare, Gubernur Agustiar Sabran: Kabut Asap Masih Normal, Beda dengan 2015". monitorkalteng (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  15. ↑ "Kalteng Masuk 10 Besar Karhutla Nasional, 3.657 Hektare Lahan Terbakar - Berita Sampit" (in Indonesian). 2026-08-18. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  16. ↑ Halwi, Muh. "Karhutla di NTB Capai 8.895 Hektare, Pemerintah Tingkatkan Kesiapsiagaan - RRI.co.id". rri.co.id - Portal berita terpercaya. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  17. ↑ "Waspada Karhutla, BMKG Ungkap Wilayah Sulteng dengan Risiko Kebakaran Tertinggi". rri.co.id. Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  18. ↑ Izra, R. (2026-08-20). "Ratusan Hektare Lahan di Jateng Terbakar, Karhutla Capai 166 Kasus". Baca yang penting, yang penting baca - Bacaaja.co (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  19. ↑ Rofiq, M. "Total Luas Lahan Bromo yang Terbakar 1.120 Hektare, Kebakaran Terkendali". detikjatim (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  20. ↑ Muliawati, Anggi. "Menhut Sebut Kebakaran Bromo Sudah Padam, Bakal Dibuka Lagi 20 Agustus". detiknews (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  21. ↑ "InfoPublik - Seluas 15.477 Hektare Lahan Terbakar di Riau, Semua Pihak Jangan Lengah!". infopublik.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  22. ↑ "JPNN". JPNN.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
  23. ↑ Oktavia, Vina (2025-07-21). "Kebakaran 204 Hektar di TN Way Kambas Lampung hingga Juli 2025, Terbanyak Semak Belukar". Kompas.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2026-08-20.
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