Malaysia haze: PM urges caution as haze worsens

Hana Naz Harun and Nurul Nurul Izzah Khalil New Straits Times 18 Jun 13;

'BE ALERT': Call to limit all outdoor activities and drink more water

KUALA LUMPUR: PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has advised the public to take precautions and limit outdoor activities following the worsening haze situation and dry weather.

"Haze is expected to worsen across Malaysia. Malacca was at alert point yesterday.

"Please limit outdoor activities and drink more water," Najib said on his Twitter account yesterday.

Najib, on his Facebook page, also said health should remain the No. 1 priority for everyone.

The westerly winds and the increase of hot spots in Sumatra, Indonesia, has driven the haze towards the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.

As at 7am yesterday, the Department of Environment's website listed five areas -- Malacca city and Bukit Rambai in Malacca, Balok Baru and Indera Mahkota in Pahang, and Kemaman in Terengganu -- that had a high density of pollutants.

Malacca city recorded the "unhealthy" Air Pollutant Index (API) reading of 129, while Bukit Rambai had a reading of 111. Conditions improved after 5pm, when the API readings decreased to 62 and 61 respectively.

It also improved in Indera Mahkota in Pahang, when the API reading dropped from 107 to 99.

However, API levels were still at "unhealthy" levels at 5pm when the haze moved towards the east coast and enveloped Balok Baru (110) and Kemaman (118).

In the Klang Valley, several areas, including Putrajaya, Port Klang, Petaling Jaya and Kuala Selangor, recorded moderate readings in the morning and showed an improvement in the evening.

The API reading is "good" when the reading is between 0 and 50, "moderate" (51 to 100), "unhealthy" (101 to 200), "very unhealthy" (201 to 300), and "hazardous" (above 300).

A satellite image by the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre showed 138 hot spots in Sumatra, compared with 101 on Saturday and 48 on Friday.

The image also showed a patch of moderate haze along the Straits of Malacca.

The Natural Resources and Environment Ministry said to resolve the haze problem, five countries -- Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and Thailand -- would attend the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee meeting on Aug 20 to 21.

The meeting aims to boost regional cooperation and discuss mechanisms to manage transboundary haze pollution.

It will also refine proposed mechanisms in the early detection of peat and forest fires through high-tech satellite and "fire danger rating systems".

The ministry said those found guilty of open burning would be liable to a fine of up to RM500,000 or imprisonment of up to five years, or both. A maximum compound of RM2,000 may also be imposed for each offence.

Indonesian embassy's social and cultural affairs minister-counsellor, Akhmad Daya Handasah Irfan, said meetings had been held between Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia to resolve the haze problem.

He added that the three countries had discussed future plans to curb the problem.

Crying need to solve haze problem
Fauziah Ismail New Straits Times 18 Jun 13;

CALL FOR ACTION: All Asean members must act fast to tackle this annual phenomenon

IF one didn't know any better, it looked very much like a cold, wintry morning in the United Kingdom over the weekend in many parts of Malaysia. Only, it wasn't cold, but hot and humid.

You don't really have to go outside of your house or the building you're in to know the haze has made its annual pilgrimage to Malaysia. On Saturday and Sunday, the Air Pollutant Index (API) readings in certain areas reached unhealthy levels.

The meteorological authorities in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore expect the situation to worsen with the hot and dry spell in Riau, Sumatra, set to peak over the next two weeks.

The Department of Environment said with the dry weather in several northern and east coast states in the peninsula, the haze is expected to continue over the next few days.

The Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC), which is parked under Meteorological Service Singapore's weather information portal, showed 185 hot spots in the 10 Asean countries on Sunday, with Sumatra topping the list with 138.

ASMC's map showed 19 hot spots in Myanmar, 14 in Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, 10 in Peninsular Malaysia, two in Sulawesi, and one each in Java and Borneo. No hot spots were detected in the Philippines.

"Scattered hot spots with localised smoke and haze were observed mainly over central Sumatra. Slight to moderate smoke haze carried by the prevailing winds blowing from the southwest or west affected the southern parts of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore," it said.

And during this time every year, we will have the authorities activating action plans to curb open burning and peat fires as well as stepping up enforcement on exhaust fumes from motor vehicles and factories.

The Fire and Rescue Department will also be on alert as the entire country is at risk of fires during the hot and dry weather.

The Health Department will issue a health advisory, asking people to drink more water while high-risk patients with respiratory problems need to seek early treatment if symptoms develop. Dust masks, eye drops, inhalers (for asthmatics) and moisturisers will be the necessities for many.

Surely, we do not want a repeat of the 1997 air quality disaster, which cost the region an estimated US$9 billion (RM28.2 billion) due mainly to healthcare and disruption of air travel and business activities.

Yes, there were positive outcomes from the disaster. We saw an intensification of regional measures. Asean established a Haze Technical Task Force. The countries implemented the regional and national haze action plans.

"Operation Haze" became the biggest cross-border fire-fighting mission in history, involving Malaysian firefighters going across to Indonesia.

All Asean leaders signed the Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution in 2002.

The agreement is the first regional arrangement in the world that binds a group of contiguous states to tackle trans-boundary haze pollution resulting from land and forest fires. It has also been considered a global role model for the tackling of trans-boundary issues.

The agreement, among others, requires the parties to the agreement to cooperate in developing and implementing measures to prevent, monitor and mitigate trans-boundary haze pollution by controlling sources of land and/or forest fires, development of monitoring, assessment and early warning systems, exchange of information and technology, and the provision of mutual assistance.

Parties to the agreement can also take legal, administrative and/or other measures to implement their obligations.

The agreement entered into force on Nov 25, 2003. To date, nine member countries, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, have ratified the agreement.

The Asean Secretariat website showed, however, that Indonesia has yet to do so. Without the republic, especially since the hotspots are found mainly there, little can be done.

At an environmental ministers' meeting in Pekanbaru, Indonesia, in 2006, then Asean secretary-general Ong Keng Yong said that the agreement would be an effective way to put out the forest fires.

"One most important and practical element is that if there is a forest fire spotted anywhere in the Asean region, the rest of the Asean countries can activate fire-fighting services and move in.

"We don't have to write in to get diplomatic clearance for aircraft. We don't have to ask for permission from the local fire services to send our firemen into the region or in the affected area," he said.

Indeed, an agreement such as the Asean Agreement on Trans-boundary Haze Pollution must be followed by assertive, definite, practical action by all parties. Failing which, such an agreement will just be in vain.

Malacca hit; haze crosses to east coast
Teo Cheng Wee Regional Correspondent In Kuala Lumpur
Straits Times 18 Jun 13;

WHEN Ms Evelyn Heng went to church with her family on Sunday, she found ash on her car windscreen.

"It was that bad," said Ms Heng, 40, of Malacca. "We promptly went to the pharmacy to get face masks for everyone."

She suffers from weather-related migraines and has stopped her usual morning walks in the park. Her two children have been told to stay indoors.

Malacca has been one of the places worst affected by the recent haze, with the air pollution index (API) hitting a high of 161 on Sunday. Tourists in the Unesco World Heritage town were seen wearing face masks, while local government officials said they would consider cancelling outdoor events if the condition worsened.

The API eased to 62 in Malacca yesterday evening, but three areas in Terengganu, Pahang and Kuala Lumpur still registered unhealthy API levels above 100.

There could be more bad news, as officials warn that the haze may worsen here in the coming months. South-west monsoon winds from hot spots in central Sumatra have brought the haze to west Malaysia, which yesterday crossed to the east coast, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) said in a statement yesterday.

A Malaysian Meteorological Department official told The Straits Times that the current south-west monsoon season ends only in September. This period sees few days of rain, which might otherwise help to clear the haze.

Prime Minister Najib Razak yesterday urged Malaysians in a Facebook posting to take care of their health as "the haze situation in Malaysia is going to worsen in the coming days".

That is just what Kuala Lumpur hospital worker Tracy Lee, 33, will be doing, after the haze triggered her asthma recently. "I will be staying indoors and drinking honey," she said.