Borneo forest fires spike again: Why El Niño isn't the sole culprit
Forest fires in Borneo have spiked due to a combination of dry weather, El Niño, and long-term landscape degradation caused by industrial plantations. Satellite data confirms a significant increase in fire activity across Kalimantan provinces.
Why it matters
The report emphasizes that human-driven land use changes are as critical as climate patterns in exacerbating environmental disasters in the region.
by Frisa Irawan Ginting, Dian Fiantis, The Conversation
edited by Swati Mestri , reviewed by Andrew Zinin
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:
Add as preferred source Credit: CC0 Public Domain Forest and land fires across Indonesia have spiked once again. News and social media in the country are flooded with images of thick plumes of smoke from Kalimantan (or Borneo)—the world's third-largest island—that are choking residential areas and even drifting into neighboring countries.
It is tempting to write this off as a purely weather-driven crisis: The dry season is well underway, and a strengthening El Niño is driving temperatures toward predicted historic highs around the globe .
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