Save Our Planet From forest and land fires
The phenomenon of forest and land fires is a natural disaster subscription that occurs each year, especially in the dry season in Indonesia. The cause instead of just one or two, but many. Environmental issues this one has always attracted special attention not only for the government but also the private sector and the community. However, what is the interest it can foster a sense of caring?
Reported by Mongabay, the results of the research scientist of the Center of International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and Hery Purnomo, professor of the Faculty of Forestry, Bogor Agricultural Institute, forest and land fires that occurred on the island of Sumatra and the Island of Borneo is driven by two main factors, namely the price of land burned priced higher to reach USD 11 million, while the price of land is the result of slash or slash Rp 8 million, and the price of land only raw priced with the figure of Rp 1.5 million. The second factor, namely, the opening of the land with the fuel considered is quick, easy, and inexpensive.
Other causes are natural factors, according to Wahyu Catur Adi Nugroho and friends (2004), forest and land fire 99.9% in Indonesia is caused by humans either intentionally or due to negligence, while 0.1% of his caused by natural factors. Factors causing forest and land fires caused by human land conversion, burning the vegetation, the activity in the utilization of natural resources, the creation of the canal-canals/channels in the peatland, and land tenure.
Hot spot which spread across the land and forest in Indonesia is a fundamental data to anticipate and prevent forest and land fires early on with supervising, monitoring and checking of the field. Data Matrix is the Heat TERRA/AQUA (LAPAN) shows there are 44 is hot per month of March 2021. The numbers can be increasing or decreasing.
Data recapitulation of forest and land fires 2016-2021 shows the highest peak of the national disaster this is in 2019 which reached 1.6 million hectares. Quoted from Merdeka.com, Head of BNPN Doni Monardo said the 2020 decline in area of forest and land fires is a significant 81% compared to the year 2020. The widespread decline of forest and land fires also occurs in this year the January-February period that is 51% compared to the same period in the year 2020.
The central government works together with local governments, activists, MILITARY, Police, agencies related to disaster management, and community leaders in order to attempt the prevention, control, reduction of forest and land fires. The rate of decline in area of forest and land fires is kept pressed through various efforts such as monitoring, checking the field (ground check), patrol the prevention, engineering rain, extinguishing the ground, extinguishing the air, revamping, and law enforcement as well as the determination of the status of the standby in anticipation of the occurrence of forest and land fires.
Natural factors could be said to be difficult to be prevented in view of the foregoing is natural. However, it is not possible for a man who was given the sense to create solutions to the problems that become a threat and a nuisance for people and the environment. Unfortunately, the fact that it’s pretty ironic that the forest and land fires occur due to deliberate action to minimize the cost and time of opening of the land by burning. In addition, the lack of prudence of the community such as throw cigarette butts carelessly and burn garbage or something without making sure the fire was completely extinguished in the forest or the land.
The impact of land clearing by burning
Land clearing activities with burned actually legitimate as long as it is done in a controlled manner. However, the burning forest land and potentially destructive nature which have a negative impact sustainable among which :
• Global warming
• Air pollution from smoking that can cause respiratory illness
• Flora can not be used because it burned
• The death of fauna because of trapped in the forest and land burning
• Disruption of economic activities
• Repeated fires will damage the natural properties of peat soil so that the more fertile for cultivation of land
Damage and losses due to forest and land fires have also attracted the attention of people who still practice open land and forest to be burned. If only people would understand and have control as well as behavior that care about the environment and forest, then prevention and intervention efforts that continue to be enhanced by the government can be run with the maximum.
The management of land without fuel has a number of positive impacts that should be considered by the community before doing the burning of forests and land, including :
• Do not cause air pollution
• Lower gas greenhouse gas emissions that have a negative impact on the climate change effect on the stability of the economy
• Ensure the continuity of economic and ecological
• The activity of transport, communications, and humans is not disturbed
• Anticipate the occurrence of drought
• Improve soil organic matter
• Restoration of environmental quality-based sustainable development
The level of awareness of the importance of preventing the damage and loss of environment and forests seems to be a priority. The majority of the people living around the forest and the land has a low level of education so that the level of understanding of this problem is also low. A study of the efforts of the community in fire prevention at the time of the opening of the land in the Village of Gunung Sari Kecamatan Pulau Laut Utara District of Kota Baru by Hj. Normela Rachmawati and Susilawati 2012, describe that research respondents have a low level of education where the average is only primary school graduates. Resulting in the absorption or level of adoption of information or dissemination given by the field officer in land clearing activities.
How to prevent the tradition of burning the land?
The community should be touched directly to foster a sense of care and responsibility for the environment and the forest they live in. The dependence on society is also a strong reason for the importance of maintaining the environment and forests. The utilization of forest and land as a source of livelihood is proof that society cannot live without natural resources.
Quoted from the Multi-Media Center, the community leaders of the Village Sigi, Kecamatan Kahayan Tengah, Kabupaten Banana Island expose the local population no longer do the cleaning and clearing land, by fire, in order to support the government against a ban on cleaning and clearing land, by fire, in efforts to prevent forest and land fires. Community leaders of the Village Sigi continually strive to raise public awareness related to this issue. He also explained, put special attention to the newcomers who often fishing in the Village of Sigi and then throw cigarette butts carelessly.
The success of community Leaders and Villagers Sigi in efforts to prevent forest and land fires can be used as an example by local governments and other public figures. It can be concluded awareness of the community of the Village Sigi formed due to the presence of a mental revolution that is activated by community leaders of the Village Sigi.
Mental revolution is a preventive effort that fundamentally aims to keep the mindset, behavior, and lifestyle of the community to be more concerned about the environment and forest. Mental revolution is a national movement that emphasizes three core values; integrity, work ethic, and mutual cooperation. Then, how to realize the mental revolution is in order to boost people’s behavior towards the better to prevent forest and land fires? Here are some of them :
1. Provide access to education and health services community programmed, focused, and targeted by the state can help build the personality of the social and culture of Indonesia;
2. The improvement of public services more easily accessible by the public, especially the people of the village faster, simplify the regulatory and service process that is not convoluted, fast response, as well as the modernization of the technology supporting public service;
3. Socialization/education/counseling routine by the central government for land and forest fires evenly throughout the territory of Indonesia with how to make props, posters, banners, signboard, etc which contains messages precautions against fire hazard area and forest land as well as sanctions if the burning of forest and land deliberately;
4. The central government work together with local governments, activists, academics, the private sector, and all layers of the smallest communities in the implementation of the program, a mental revolution ;
5. Intensive mentoring to the community who will be performing the opening of the land without fuel so that people feel the care provided by the government;
6. Provide support facilities to the public as a form of real support management of land without fuel such as providing equipment slash or slash and plant seeds. It is also a form of community empowerment;
7. The community each other shoulder to shoulder to do the opening of land without fuel to realize the value of mutual cooperation and work ethic;
8. Encourage and emphasize the dangers of open land and forest with burned by elements of society that are most closely with the community, namely the community leaders, village heads, and communities that have a strong influence to galvanize the community of the ignorance and the want of knowledge related to the issue of forest and land fires because of the disaster first and land fires is a shared responsibility;
9. Requires the movement of a mental revolution to students who do community service, because the students as the young generation are expected to be the agent of change, able to realize this program that fosters community awareness;
10. The government in synergy with influencers to expand the information, the prevention of forest and land fires, because of a mental revolution is not only devoted to the villagers who live around the forest and land;
11. Set up a task force for combating forest and land fires in related departments according to the tasks and responsibilities that comes with supporting equipment, with the physical and mental readiness that is based on commitment, morale, and discipline of work to carry out tasks in the field; and
12. People who have this awareness, should play an active role in realizing the mental revolution to prevent forest and land fires, such as:
• Do not burn the forest and land at all, although the burning of forests and land in a controlled manner is allowed. The burning of land has an impact on the quality of the soil;
• Promote the movement of the revolution to face the forest and land fires;
• Remind the friends, neighbors, parents, siblings, and everyone around not to do the burning of forest and land either intentionally and be more careful when on the move that utilizes this natural resource;
• Do not burn garbage/something in the area of land and forest without making sure the fire is completely extinguished; and
• Do not throw cigarette butts and/or warn the people around him so as not to throw cigarette butts carelessly around the forest and land because it can trigger a fire.
Overhaul of the constitutional alone is not enough to face the issues of forest and land fires, but also must be coupled with an overhaul of man and nature. The public should realize that natural resources are not only created to be drained of their benefits but they also must be protected for the sake of building a life from the aspects of economic, social, and cultural sustainability.
Thus we are determined to take as well as protect the forest, especially the flora of the forest in Indonesia as a resource that can be cultivated. In addition, with the development of the current, we utilize the latest technology to support the tissue culture and absorb the labor force that is competent.
We hope that more and more parties could participate in improving the state of the environment, especially forests in Indonesia to propagate plants.
