(AFP) Google News 10 Sep 11;
KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia has complained to Indonesia about land-clearing fires in the neighbouring country that have led to a blanket of pollution and poor air quality.
Environment Minister Douglas Uggah Embas sent a letter to his Indonesian counterpart Friday about hundreds of suspected fires on Sumatra island, national news agency Bernama reported.
Indonesia's government has outlawed land-clearing by fire but weak law enforcement means the ban is largely ignored, and pollution regularly blankets the region.
Air quality on Friday dropped to a level deemed "unhealthy" in one area of Negeri Sembilan state, south of the capital Kuala Lumpur. Though conditions improved on Saturday, some 60 percent of the country recorded "moderate" pollution.
Uggah Embas said Indonesia had improved efforts to tackle the problem since 2005 when parts of one Malaysian state experienced pollution at highly dangerous levels.
He is expected to meet his counterpart, Gusti Muhammad Hatta, at an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gathering in Bangkok on September 18.
And he said Malaysia would push for the setting up of a regional fire fighting squad to tackle haze-related fires in ASEAN member countries.
"We will push for this unit because we need quick deployment should any member country require such assistance," he was quoted as saying.
His aides could not immediately comment on the Bernama report.
Malaysia worries over 600 Sumatra hotspots
New Straits Times 11 Sep 11;
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia expressed concern to Indonesia after satellite images detected 600 hotspots with high temperature levels in Sumatra this year.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Douglas Uggah Embas said his ministry sent a letter on Friday to Indonesian Environment Minister Professor Dr Gusti Muhammad Hatta.
He told Bernama that Malaysia believed Indonesia was doing its best to control the situation. "Over the past few years, they improved their responses and efforts to tackle these fires."
Uggah will meet Gusti at the Asean Ministerial Steering Committee meeting in Bangkok next Sunday.
He said the monsoon wind that brought smoke from forest fires in Sumatra caused the haze in Malaysia.
However, he said, the situation was not as bad as it was in 1997 and 2005, when the air pollutant index (API) readings hit record highs.
Asked about Malaysia's proposal for the creation of an Asean rapid fire-fighting squad to tackle haze-related fires, he said the 12th Meeting of Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee on Transboundary Haze Pollution in Bangkok on Sept 22 and 22 would discuss it.
"We will push for this unit because we need quick deployment should a country require help.
"It's not just about sending firefighters to other countries; it's also about them helping us when the situation requires it."
Malaysia sent 1,000 firefighters to help Indonesia tackle forest fires in 1997 and 124 in 2005.
Malaysia declared an emergency in Sarawak in 1997 because of the haze.
In 2005, an emergency was declared in Port Klang and Kuala Selangor when the API eached 500.
Predeep Nambiar reports that the haze remains in the Klang Valley.
The API readings showed Kuala Lumpur as "moderate" (80) while Petaling Jaya and Shah Alam recorded 79 and 72.
Thirty-two areas in the country were "moderate".
The worst affected town outside the Klang Valley was Nilai, with an API reading of 96, just four points shy of the "unhealthy" category. Seremban and Port Dickson had readings of 73 and 76.
The previous day, Nilai recorded a reading of 101, the highest in the nation.
The Meteorological Service Singapore's website said there were more hotspots because of persistent dry conditions in central and southern Sumatra.
Read more: Malaysia worries over 600 Sumatra hotspots http://www.nst.com.my/nst/articles/2hazey/Article#ixzz1Xgx1b6ui
