Forest and land fires across Kalimantan intensified significantly throughout July and August 2026. New hotspots and fires were reported in the news almost every day, while thick smoke haze spread across the region and even affected neighbouring countries.

In the last week of August, the situation became much closer to home. Bumiterra’s field team reported a fire less than 2 km from one of our restoration sites. It quickly became one of the most intense situations our team had faced, as we had never experienced a fire this close to our sites or on this scale.

A Collective Effort to Contain the Fire and Keep It From Spreading

Bumiterra’s field team and Community Keepers (Mitra) immediately joined forces with local community members and organizations to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading. Our team was divided into two groups: one focused on containing the fire, while the other stayed close to the restoration site to monitor the situation and watch for any signs of the fire spreading toward the area.

Bumiterra’s field team and Community Keepers joined forces with other local residents to contain the fire and establish firebreaks.

The team closely monitored the surrounding area, assessing the potential spread of the fire based on wind direction and speed. As a preventive measure, they also worked alongside the community to establish firebreaks and create a buffer between the fire and the restoration site. They also cleared high-risk areas around the site of dry leaves, branches, and other easily combustible materials.

In a time like this, the community relied on the spirit of gotong royong, coming together to protect their lands and forests. Through this collective effort, the fire was eventually brought under control and prevented from spreading any further.

Bumiterra Launches Firewatch to Strengthen Forest Fire Monitoring and Response

Amid the fire, our co-founders and product team worked on upgrading our fire monitoring system, leading to the development of Bumiterra Firewatch. The platform allows us to track and monitor the location and status of fires around our restoration sites, while also sharing updates and images from affected areas.

Bumiterra Firewatch is publicly accessible at https://firewatch.bumi-terra.com/ to track fire activity around our restoration areas.

Building Stronger Fire Prevention Measures and Monitoring Protocols

While Bumiterra has always had a set of protocols and SOPs in place, the recent fire has prompted us to further tighten our fire prevention and response measures. This includes reinforcing restrictions around the use of fire, burning waste, and disposing of cigarette butts, particularly around restoration areas. These measures apply not only to our teams and Community Keepers, but also encourage them to remind and speak up to other community members when necessary.

We are also strengthening protocols for maintaining firebreaks, ensuring firefighting equipment is ready and accessible, and improving preparedness and regular monitoring patrols. As part of our broader fire risk mitigation and prevention efforts, the team is also implementing risk mapping, early warning measures, and reporting protocols, especially for areas with a high risk of fire.

Bumiterra Relief Fund for Fire Response and Future Risk Mitigation

Since the fire broke out, Bumiterra’s HQ team has maintained close communication with the field team, providing support and helping with anything they need on the ground. The team has continued to monitor the situation, evaluate developments, and adjust response strategies as needed. We also sent essential supplies to support the response on the field, including masks, medicines, and other firefighting equipment.

Relief supplies have been delivered in response to the needs on the ground.

As we navigate this fire situation, we are grateful to have the resources to support the response. At the same time, this experience has reminded us that responding to and preventing fires like this requires significant resources, and that having the right resources in place is important.

This is why we are raising the Bumiterra Relief Fund to support fire prevention, risk mitigation, and response efforts, especially ahead of the next dry season. The donation account remains open for anyone who would like to contribute to these efforts:

Bank Central Asia
7350096358
a.n. Bumi Terra Gaia PT

Add 111 to the end of your transfer amount as a donation marker. For example: a Rp10,000 donation → Rp10,111.

Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected. We hope the situation will gradually get better, and that we can continue to do more to protect our forests, communities, and environment.

Get well soon, Indonesia. 🤍🌱