Indonesia tests dry ice technology to disperse toxic haze from forest fires

Indonesia has begun testing dry ice technology to disperse toxic haze from forest and peatland fires, with officials reporting improved visibility near an airport in South Sumatra.

The National Disaster Management Agency said Thursday that the trials use atmospheric modification techniques to disperse smoke without requiring rain clouds, according to state news agency Antara.

Berton S.P. Panjaitan, acting head of the agency’s data, information and communication center, said the method targets dense smoke directly, unlike conventional cloud seeding, which uses salt particles to stimulate rainfall.

He explained that forest fires create atmospheric inversion layers that trap hazardous smoke close to the ground.

Response teams release 3-millimeter dry ice granules at minus 75C (minus 103F) to disrupt these layers and help smoke disperse.

A Cessna Caravan aircraft flew two flights Thursday at an altitude of 4,500 feet, releasing 1,600 kilograms (3,527 pounds) of dry ice over Palembang’s Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International Airport.

The disaster agency said that following the operation, visibility jumped from 650 meters (2,133 feet) to 2,800 meters (9,186 feet).

The trials are set to continue through Sunday before authorities assess possible expansion to other affected provinces.