Enviro News Asia, Ketapang — Amid intensive ongoing forest and land fire (karhutla) suppression operations, a joint team from the Ministry of Forestry (Kemenhut) uncovered illegal forest encroachment activities in Sungai Awan Kiri Village, Ketapang Regency, West Kalimantan, on Friday, September 4, 2026. Officers successfully seized one excavator unit and detained two individuals caught clearing land without authorization inside a Convertible Production Forest (HPK) area.
Director General of Forest Law Enforcement, Dwi Januanto Nugroho, reaffirmed the government’s firm commitment to safeguarding forest areas against all forms of environmental degradation, particularly during periods of heightened vulnerability to wildfire threats.
“It is deeply regrettable that while our teams are fighting on the frontlines to control forest and land fires, parties are still found damaging forest areas,” Januanto asserted. “We are seriously committed to taking decisive legal action against all environmental and forestry crime perpetrators—whether individuals, financial backers, or corporations—to deliver a strong deterrent effect and protect our natural resources.”
Echoing these sentiments, Head of the Kalimantan Forest Law Enforcement Agency, Leonardo Gultom, commended the alertness and inter-agency synergy that led to the operation’s success.
“The successful enforcement in Ketapang originated from the joint team’s vigilance while monitoring wildfire conditions,” Gultom stated on September 6, 2026. “Solid coordination between Forest Gakkum, the West Kalimantan Provincial Environment and Forestry Office, and the South Ketapang Forest Management Unit (KPH) enabled immediate detection of this illegal activity. Investigators are currently probing the involvement of other parties, including financial backers and land owners who are being summoned for legal accountability.”
The enforcement action began as the joint team—comprising Forest Gakkum, the Provincial Environment and Forestry Office, the South Ketapang KPH, Muara Pawan Sector Police, Delta Pawan Military Command, and related agencies—was carrying out fire suppression duties in Sungai Awan Kiri Village, Muara Pawan District, an area that had experienced fire outbreaks since mid-August 2026. During suppression and prevention activities, the team discovered suspicious land clearing using heavy equipment, specifically a Sumitomo S130 excavator.
Initial field inspections revealed that the unauthorized operation had constructed a 2.5-meter-wide by 1,050-meter-long drainage canal, alongside a 6-meter-wide by 1,050-meter-long access road inside the Convertible Production Forest zone. For evidentiary and legal processing, officers secured the heavy equipment operator, identified by the initials W, alongside another individual, WN, and confiscated physical evidence. Meanwhile, the individual suspected of owning the land is undergoing formal summons for questioning.
Under applicable laws, unauthorized occupation, usage, or cultivation of state forest areas is strictly prohibited under Article 50 Paragraph (3) Letter a in conjunction with Article 78 Paragraph (2) of Law No. 41/1999 on Forestry, as amended by Law No. 6/2023 on Job Creation, in conjunction with Articles 20 and 21 of the Indonesian Criminal Code (KUHP). Convicted perpetrators face up to 10 years imprisonment and a maximum fine of IDR 7.5 billion.
The Ministry of Forestry continues to urge all citizens and entities to comply strictly with environmental laws, collaborate in protecting forest conservation, and actively prevent illegal land clearing and wildfire occurrences. (*)
