Malaysia: Put out forest fires, Indonesia urged

HASHINI KAVISHTRI KANNAN AND MANGALARUPINI MUNIANDY New Straits Times 18 Sep 14;

KUALA LUMPUR: MALAYSIA has written to Indonesia expressing its concern over the rising number of hotspots in southern Sumatera and Kalimantan, which has caused parts of the country to be blanketed in haze.

The letter was sent by the Department of Environment director-general Datuk Halimah Hassan to her Indonesian counterpart two days ago. She urged Indonesia to take action over forest fires in west and central parts of the country.

According to the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre, 226 hotspots were detected in Indonesia yesterday based on satellite imagery from the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The number was a slight decrease from the previous day’s of 232.

In a statement yesterday, Halimah said smoke from the fires in the west and central Kalimantan, and the movement of wind from the southeast had led to trans- boundary pollution in Sarawak, which borders the western part of Kalimantan.

As at 10am yesterday, Kuching’s Air Pollutant Index (API) reading was at 99, Samarahan, 125, and Sri Aman, 106.

However at 5pm, Sri Aman’s API reading decreased to 96 while Kuching and Samarahan’s API stood at an unhealthy level of 110 and 113, respectively.

These areas had shown unhealthy readings in the last two days.

Following this, AFP reported that Indonesia’s parliament on Tuesday had voted to ratify a regional agreement on cross-border haze as fires ripped through forests in the west of the country.

“Under the agreement, Indonesia is obliged to strengthen its policies on forest fires and haze, actively participate in regional decision making on the issue and to dedicate more resources to the problem regionally and domestically,” the report said.

Haze set to disappear with wind pattern changes in South China Sea
hanis zainal, christopher tan, AND yu ji The Star 18 Sep 14;

Dreaded haze: A ferry crossing the South Channel with Penang island barely visible in the background at 4.15pm yesterday.

Dreaded haze: A ferry crossing the South Channel with Penang island barely visible in the background at 4.15pm yesterday.

PETALING JAYA: The country will see a brief respite from the present haze situation starting today.

This is a result of a change in wind pattern, brought about by the dissipation of Typhoon Kalmaegi over southern China.

“We will see the haze gradually disappearing as the wind pattern changes to bring in wind from the South China Sea instead (of Sumatra and Kalimantan),” said Malaysian Meteorological Department spokesman Dr Mohd Hisham Mohd Anip.

He said winds from the South China Sea would bring in more moisture in the air, resulting in more rain over all parts of the country today.

Dr Hisham said Malaysians could expect a longer respite from the haze once the inter-monsoon season, expected to start by the end of next week, arrived.

The country has recently been hit with haze, as evidenced by the Department of Environment’s Air Pollutant Index (API) readings which recorded “Moderate” at most areas in the country.

Sarawak was the most affected as two areas in the state recorded unhealthy API readings at 5pm yesterday.

The two areas were Samarahan and Kuching, which saw an API reading of 113 and 110 respectively.

An API reading of between 0 and 50 is considered good; 51 to 100, moderate; 101 to 200, unhealthy; 201 to 300, very unhealthy; and 301 and above, hazardous.

In George Town, the air quality deteriorated with the API readings nearing the “unhealthy” level.

The readings recorded at the Prai station at 6am was 32, and 37 at 11am before shooting up to 73 at 2pm.

In Seberang Jaya 2 in Prai, it was 48 at 6am and 53 at 11am. The index then rose to 71 at 2pm.

In Kuching, the API was around 80 on Tuesday, but by yesterday noon, it was 119.

State authorities are blaming the smog on the 219 hotspots detected in southern Kalimantan.

However, there were also five hotspots detected within Sarawak yesterday.

Assistant Environment Minister Datuk Len Talif Salleh said two hotspots were identified in Samarahan, two in Sarikei and one in Sri Aman.

“We have absolutely not issued any open burning permits. Our officers have been dispatched to carry out on-the-ground assessments at the hotspots,” Talif said.

Sarawak has been experiencing lower rainfall this year, leading to dry taps in several villages about 100km from Kuching in July.

Kuching API levels reach unhealthy levels
yu ji The Star 17 Sep 14;

A view of Kuching through the haze from the south to north banks of Sarawak River. This photo was taken at noon on Wednesday.

A view of Kuching through the haze from the south to north banks of Sarawak River. This photo was taken at noon on Wednesday.
KUCHING: The haze across southern Sarawak worsen overnight mid this week. On Malaysia Day, the air pollution index (API) here was around 80, but by Wednesday noon, it reached 119.

State authorities are blaming the smog on the 219 hotspots detected in southern Kalimantan. However, there were also five hotspots detected within Sarawak.

Assistant Environment Minister Datuk Len Talif Salleh said two hotspots were identified in Samarahan, two in Sarikei and one in Sri Aman.

“We have absolutely not issued any open burning permits. Our officers have been dispatched to carry out on-the-ground assessments at the hotspots,” Talif told The Star. Asked about the possibility of large scale commercial burning, he said these hotspots were unlikely to be from oil palm plantations.

“We are not sure yet but based on the coordinates, one of the hotspots is near a plantation in Samarahan, but not within it. Another hotspot in Sarikei is near a longhouse. The haze you see now is from the wind blown from south east Kalimantan. We know this clearly because at Tebedu (a border town between Sarawak and Indonesia) the API reading is about 150.”

The highest API readings nationwide yesterday were all in Sarawak.

At Samarahan, a suburb near Kuching, the reading was 123, in Sri Aman it was 104. Readings between 101 and 200 fall within the “unhealthy” range, while readings between 51 and 100 are considerate “moderate”. The air quality in Sibu, which is in the middle of the state, was 66.

Less affected areas in Sarawak were all in the north. In Miri, where Malaysia Day celebrations were held, the API was only 49, at Limbang it was 26.

Since mid this year, open burning permits from the Natural Resources and Environment Board have stopped being issued. Sarawak has been experiencing less rainfall this year, leading to dry taps in several villages about 100km from Kuching in July.

According to the latest monthly weather bulletin available, most areas received 20% below the average of rainfall in June.

“Malaysia in generally still experiencing phase of Southwest Monsoon, which is characterized by surface winds that blow regularly from the west, and also relatively drier condition than the other seasons,” said the bulletin from the Malaysian Meteorological Department.

“This situation will result in most areas across the country will have more days without rain compare to rainy day, and in turn will lead to drier weather conditions,” it added.