Stephen Then, The Star 29 Apr 09;
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: Countries in the southern part of South-East Asia are preparing early for the possibility of a transboundary haze due to an anticipated prolonged dry spell.
The ministers in charge of environmental issues from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and Thailand met at the Brunei capitol here Wednesday for a sub-regional ministerial committee meeting on the issue.
They warned that a prolonged dry spell may hit the region from June to September.
Malaysia’s Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Douglas Unggah said there will be an anticipated surge of hotspots due to fires during the coming dry season.
“The Asean (Association of South-East Asian Nations) Specialised Meteorological Centre reported that occasional showers interspersed with short dry spells can be expected in May, with brief surges in the number of hotspots during the drier periods.
“The traditional dry season in the southern part of the Asean region is likely to start around June and will last until September.
“Increased hotspots can be expected in the region, with the possibility of transboundary haze during the more persistent dry periods. Vigilance should be stepped up in anticipation of this escalation of hotspots,” he said after the meeting at a resort here.
The ministers agreed that not only should Asean member countries increase their alertness for hotpsots inside their own borders, they must also share more detailed and specific information concerning the air-pollution situation in each others’ countries with the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC).
The ministers decided that Asean member countries should share data about their country’s environmental particulate matters of less than 10 microns and furnish the ASMC with these details so that it can monitor the dispersion of smoke and the impact caused by the transboundary haze in the region.
They must share these data in addition to reporting to the centre on the number of existing hotspots and the prevailing weather outlook in their respective countries.
During the meeting here, Asean member countries expressed their appreciation to Indonesia for “the substantial effort it has put in to implement its action plan to tackle transboundary haze pollution.”
The ministers noted that Indonesia had implemented several new moves to try to prevent and mitigate forest fires and open-burning.
Among other measures, it has enforced a zero-burning campaign that included the enactment of laws that prohibit using fire as a means of land-clearing.
The Indonesian government had also made efforts to provide the appropriate machinery and equipment that would enable land-clearing by farmers to be carried out without resorting to open-burning in southern Sumatra and central Kalimantan.
Indonesia has also developed a fire-danger rating system that enabled more efficient control, the meeting noted.
As for Malaysia and Indonesia’s joint efforts to tackle the haze, the two governments had jointly collaborated to install an air-quality monitoring station in Riau Province in Indonesia.
The station is expected to be fully operational next month and will go a long way in helping to detect fires and haze early, the ministers said.
Indonesia and Malaysia are also aggressively carrying out fire prevention programmes in five selected villages in Rokan Hilir Regency (in Indonesia) by trying to rehabilitate and manage the peatlands there.
During the meeting yesterday, Asean also thanked Thailand for contributing US$50,000 to the Asean Transboundary Haze Pollution Control Fund.
Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore and Vietnam had earlier contributed US$50,000 each to the fund.
Asean To Step Up Vigilance Against Haze
Jackson Sawatan, Bernama 29 Apr 09;
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, April 29 (Bernama) -- Asean ministers have agreed to step up vigilance against haze in the wake of an anticipated dry season between June and September this year.
Malaysian Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Douglas Uggah Embas said they also agreed to share haze pollutant data for regular reporting by the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC).
"A slightly-below normal rainfall is expected between June and September and this can cause an increase in hotspot activities in the region, with the possibility of transboundary smoke haze during the more persistent dry period."
Uggah was speaking to reporters here after chairing the 7th Meeting of the Sub-regional Ministerial Steering Committee on Transboundary Haze Pollution, here, today.
Malaysia is the current chair of the sub-regional committee, which also comprises Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand -- the countries affected most by the recurring haze problem.
For the May period, Uggah said, the ASMC reported that there would be occasional showers interspersed with short dry spells, which could cause brief surges in hotspot activities.
On the sharing of haze pollutant data, he said the move was to enable monitoring of the dispersion and impact of transboundary haze, in addition to reporting on the weather outlook and number of hotspots.
Asked how bad the haze would be this year, Uggah said it would not be as bad as the 2006 haze owing to the numerous measures taken by member countries.
"We have taken note and expressed appreciation on the efforts by Indonesia in implementing its plan of action to deal with the issue and urged that the efforts be sustained," he said.
A media release issued at the end of the meeting said among the measures taken by Indonesia -- the country often blamed for the haze caused by forest and peat fires in Kalimantan and Sumatra -- was to issue early notice to the stakeholders, asking them to be on the alert to prevent land and forest fires.
The country had also mobilised teams to conduct ground checking in Riau apart from implementing good agricultural practices in West Kalimantan.
It also launched a zero-burn campaign and provided machinery for land clearing, among other things.
Uggah said collaborative efforts between Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia had also shown progress in checking transboundary haze.
"The haze prevention programme implemented by Malaysia and Indonesia in Riau, including the installation of an air quality monitoring station in Bagan Siapi-api will be in full operation next month.
"A fire and haze prevention programme through improved management of peatlands in the Rokan Hilir Regency in Riau is also being implemented," he said.
Singapore and Indonesia had also initiated an action plan to reduce peat fires through mitigative water management and conservation methods in Jambi province, he added.
-- BERNAMA
Bad environmental days beginning June
Joniston Bangkuai, The New Straits Times 29 Apr 09;
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Wed: MORE hotspots are expected in the region between June and September, with the possibility of transboundary haze during the more persistent dry periods.
To curb the clearing of undergrowth using fire, the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution which held its Seventh meeting here agreed to step up vigilance.
The meeting was attended by representatives from Brunei, Malaysia , Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand and the Asean Secretariat.
Malaysian Environment and Natural Resources Minister Datuk Douglas Uggah Embas, who chaired the meeting, said member countries will share data on the haze for regular reporting by the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre.
ASMC reported to the meeting that slightly below normal to slightly above normal rainfall was expected during the period.
Uggah said the ministers appreciated Indonesia’s “substantive” efforts in implementing its Plan of Action (PoA) in dealing with transboundary haze pollution and urged that the efforts be sustained.
“The ministers also noted several new actions taken by Indonesia to further enhance its efforts to prevent and mitigate land and forest fires,” he told Malaysian journalists.
He said there was also “encouraging progress” in the collaboration between Indonesia and Malaysia in the implementation of fire and haze prevention programmes in Kalimantan’s Riau Province.
The collaboration includes the installation of an air quality monitoring station which is expected to be in full operation next month and the rehabilitation and management of peatlands.
At the meeting, representatives from Riau shared their experiences on the effectiveness and impacts of the action programmes under the bilateral collaboration with Malaysia for possible replication in other fire-prone provinces in Kalimantan.
The committee will hold its next meeting in Singapore in October in conjunction with the 11th Asean Ministerial Meeting on the Environment.
