Papua's South Becomes a New Wildfire Hotspot
For years, Sumatra and Kalimantan dominated Indonesia's annual wildfire headlines. In 2026, South Papua has forced its way into that conversation. By late July, the province had recorded 25,838 hectares of burned land in a single fire season, already more than three times the 8,107 hectares damaged across all of 2025, according to data from Indonesia's Forestry Ministry.
The scale is striking on its own. What makes it more significant is where much of the burning is happening.
One-Third of Papua's Burn Scar Sits Inside One Project
Between January and August 2026, independent forest monitoring platform Nusantara Atlas recorded approximately 60,407 hectares of burned land inside the boundaries of the Merauke food estate, a national strategic project covering 2.3 million hectares of forested land in South Papua. That single cluster accounts for roughly one-third of the total burn scar recorded across the entire island of Papua.
The Merauke estate is operated by a combination of state-owned enterprises and government-approved private companies. Its stated purpose is to develop rice and sugarcane plantations alongside logistic infrastructure. The project has faced sustained public opposition over deforestation risk, and a separate lawsuit concerns the alleged illegal seizure of customary forest land.
Field observations conducted by indigenous rights watchdog Pusaka Bentala Rakyat between August and early September documented fires burning along a 58-kilometer corridor of the estate, stretching from near Wanam village in Ilwayab district through to Muting district. Activists reported multiple instances of deliberate land-clearing fires, apparently linked to the preparation of rice plantation land and the construction of a road and an airport, according to the group's Ambrosius Mulait.
Deliberate Clearing in a Fragile Landscape
The distinction between accidental wildfire and intentional land clearing matters enormously for how the situation is understood and addressed. Pusaka Bentala Rakyat's documentation points toward the latter, at least in part. Customary forest communities, including the Kwipalo Clan in Mandiri Jagebob, Merauke regency, have already seen adjacent land deforested for sugarcane conversion, as reported earlier in 2025.
South Papua's fire burden now ranks second nationally, behind only West Kalimantan, according to Forestry Ministry figures. The combination of a large-scale development footprint, dry season conditions, and documented land-clearing activity has concentrated fire risk in a province that was not historically a primary concern.
Why It Matters for Hosts
Independent operators running eco-lodges, cultural tourism experiences, or community-based guesthouses in Papua and surrounding provinces should monitor air quality and access conditions closely during the dry season, particularly in South Papua. Smoke from large burn events can affect visibility, health conditions, and traveler confidence across a wide radius. Hosts who communicate proactively with guests about seasonal conditions and maintain flexible booking policies are better positioned to retain bookings when fire news circulates internationally. Connecting with local indigenous and environmental networks can also provide earlier warning of developing situations than official channels alone.
The figures and field observations cited in this post were first reported by Gembong Hanung for The Jakarta Post on September 18, 2026.
First reported by thejakartapost.com.