In brief
Air pollution–related deaths in Indonesia rose 42 % in September to 5,310 from 3,740 in August. The jump was mainly caused by smoke from forest and land fires, especially in Kalimantan, Sumatra and Java. The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air links the surge to an El Niño‑driven drought and urges stronger fire prevention and peatland restoration.
Air pollution–related deaths in Indonesia rose 42 percent in September, reaching 5,310 from an estimated 3,740 in August, a figure released Thursday by the Helsinki‑based Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
CREA’s report attributes the spike largely to widespread forest and land fires, with smoke alone accounting for 3,560 deaths in September—about double the August estimate—while chronic, non‑fire emissions from urban and industrial sources caused an additional 1,750 deaths.
In four provinces of Kalimantan, toxic fire smoke made up 94–99 percent of air‑pollution related deaths; over 80 percent of deaths in Sumatra were similarly linked to fire smoke. Java’s deaths, however, remained tied to urban and industrial sources, highlighting a disproportionate health burden compared to urban centers in Java.
CREA added that an estimated 57.8 million people were exposed to unhealthy or hazardous air nationwide in September, and Indonesia’s Ministry of Health reported 333,470 acute respiratory infection cases linked to forest and land fires as of October 21.
The report connects the surge to an El Niño‑driven drought that intensified wildfires. CREA calls for stronger fire prevention, peatland restoration, and enforcement against illegal land clearing to curb future deaths.
