Determination of soil moisture reduction rate on peatlands in South Sumatera due to the 2019 extreme dry season

Abstract

The positive phenomenon of Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD +) in 2019 caused an extreme dry season in parts of Indonesia, including in the province of South Sumatera. This caused massive fires on peatlands in South Sumatera. The Government of Indonesia through the Agency for Peat Restoration (BRG) has deployed an integrated equipment system to measure in situ several fire control parameters on several peatlands, including in South Sumatera. The aim is to predict and mitigate fire incidents on peatlands. One of the measured parameters is soil moisture. This study has examined the impact of the extreme dry season on the rate of decline in soil moisture at four BRG measurement stations, namely: Cinta jaya-1, Cinta Jaya-2, Padang Sugihan-3, and Karang Agung. The rate of decrease in soil moisture (% per day) obtained were: 0.06, 0.31, 0.38, 0.47 respectively for the stations Cinta jaya-1, Cinta Jaya-2, Padang Sugihan-3, and Karang Agung.