Enviro News Asia, Jakarta – Vice Minister of Forestry Rohmat Marzuki has expressed the highest appreciation to all Manggala Agni personnel and Ministry of Forestry Law Enforcement (Gakkum) staff who worked hard to extinguish the fire at the Jatiwaringin Final Waste Processing Site (TPA) in Tangerang Regency, describing the success as a concrete demonstration of the Ministry of Forestry’s commitment to keeping Indonesia’s skies free of smoke.
The achievement is also the fruit of solid collaboration among the Ministry of Forestry, the Ministry of Environment (KLH), BNPB, the Tangerang Regency Government, and Indonesian Armed Forces and National Police personnel.
Vice Minister Rohmat Marzuki stressed that the handling of the Jatiwaringin TPA fire directly implemented the direction of Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni on the importance of cross-sector cooperation, as delivered at the Special Coordination Meeting on 2026 Karhutla Control in Jakarta on June 18.
“Handling forest and land fires requires collaboration from all parties and there must be no sectoral ego,” the Vice Minister affirmed at the Evaluation and Learning Event for the Jatiwaringin TPA Fire Extinguishing Operation, alongside a Certificate Handover to Manggala Agni in Jakarta on Monday (7/13).
The eight-day extinguishing operation, from July 3 to July 10, 2026, achieved 100 percent completion. Of the total 33-hectare TPA Jatiwaringin area, approximately 15 hectares were affected by fire. A total of 41 Manggala Agni personnel from the Java-Bali-Nusra and Sulawesi Forest and Land Fire Control Centers were deployed to the frontline. During the ground operation, approximately 9.4 million liters of water were used for wetting and extinguishing.
The success on the ground was driven by the 5M Management approach. Smoke/Area Management involved regular mapping to measure daily progress and keep field operations precise and measurable. Water Management covered identifying and opening access to water sources near the site for continuous supply. Human Resource Management regulated personnel working hours of up to 11 hours per day, including night extinguishing operations. Infrastructure and Facilities Management optimized the use of pump engines, hoses, water tanks, and coordinated helicopter water bombing and excavator support. Logistics Management ensured the availability of nutrition, mineral water, machine fuel, and medicines for field personnel.
Facing waste characteristics different from peatland fires, the team applied methods that proved more effective and enabled faster personnel movement in isolating burning waste materials. Despite severe challenges including thick smoke, methane gas, and damaged water hoses from broken glass shards, the operation was completed safely with all personnel declared healthy in post-operation medical check-ups.
Drawing on 2023 data showing multiple TPA fires across Indonesia and BMKG predictions that this year’s dry season peak under El Niño will occur in August, the Ministry of Forestry is prioritizing prevention over response. Coordination with the Ministry of Environment will be immediately intensified to map TPA sites across Indonesia to anticipate similar fire risks. (*)
