The government has disputed the recently published scientific research that claimed the area lost to forest and peatland fires in 2019 was larger than official estimates, a move which activists said highlighted the government’s lack of openness toward data gathered from independent studies.

The research, which was published in the Earth System Science Data (ESSD) journal in November, found that 3.1 million hectares were burned in 2019, almost double the 1.6 million ha reported by the Environment and Forestry Ministry.

David Gaveau, one of the study authors, said the recent publication of the research in a peer-reviewed journal had reaffirmed his initial analysis conducted in 2019, which estimated that the 2019 fires were far worse than official estimates.

Source:
courtesy of THE JAKARTA POST

by A. Muh. Ibnu Aqil (The Jakarta Post)

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