Cloud seeding rumours are 'false, malicious': MEWR Minister Vivian Balakrishnan

The National Environment Agency does not engage in cloud seeding and has no plans to do so, said Minister for Environment and Water Resources Dr Vivian Balakrishnan.
Channel NewsAsia 17 Sep 15;

SINGAPORE: Rumours that cloud seeding is taking place to induce rain ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix are false, Minister for Environment and Water Resources Dr Vivian Balakrishnan said.

Addressing a WhatsApp message that has been making the rounds in Singapore, Dr Balakrishnan posted on Facebook on Thursday (Sep 17): “The National Environment Agency does not engage in cloud seeding and has no plans to do so. Singapore is so small that even if anybody tried to do it, the rain would almost certainly fall outside Singapore.”

He added: “Singaporeans should beware of malicious people spreading false rumours during a period when anxieties are heightened.”

The original WhatsApp message called for people to be wary of what it claimed were “chemically-induced rain showers”, purportedly meant to reduce haze levels in light of the coming Formula 1 race, which will be held on roads in Singapore’s Civic District from Sep 18 to 20.



Singapore has been blanketed by haze caused by forest fires in neighbouring Indonesia. The 3-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) hit two-year highs earlier in September, with readings crossing 200. They have dipped below 100 in the past two days.

AIR QUALITY TO REMAIN MODERATE: NEA

In an advisory released on Thursday, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said that hazy conditions in Singapore have eased further as prevailing winds continue to blow from the southeast. As at 1pm, the 24-hour PSI was 76 to 96, in the Moderate range.

For the next 12 hours, the 24-hour PSI is expected to be in the high end of the Moderate range, but may enter the low end of the Unhealthy range if unfavourable winds blow in haze from Sumatra, the agency added.

NEA reiterated that the health impact of the haze is dependent on a person's health status, the PSI level, and the length and intensity of outdoor activity.

"Reducing outdoor activities and physical exertion can help limit the ill effects from haze exposure," said the NEA. "Given the air quality forecast for the next 24 hours, healthy persons should reduce prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion."

"The elderly, pregnant women and children should minimise prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion, while those with chronic lung or heart disease should avoid prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion," NEA added.

- CNA/av


NEA does not engage in cloud seeding: Vivian Balakrishnan
Today Online 17 Sep 15;

SINGAPORE — The National Environment Agency (NEA) does not engage in cloud seeding and has no plans to do so, said Minister for Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan today (Sept 17), refuting rumours that cloud seeding is being carried out by the Government.

“Singapore is so small that even if anybody tried to do it, the rain would almost certainly fall outside Singapore,” he said in a Facebook post.

The post included a screenshot of a Whatsapp message that claimed the Government was conducting cloud seeding to alleviate the haze due to the upcoming Formula 1 race, which starts this Friday. The message, which claimed to be from a “friend working in NEA”, urged people to stay away from “chemically induced rain showers”.

“You may have seen this making the rounds,” said Dr Balakrishan, referring to the Whatsapp message. “It is untrue.”

He stated: “Singaporeans should beware of malicious people spreading false rumours during a period when anxieties are heightened.”

The NEA also addressed the rumour on its website, saying the claims are untrue.

Cloud seeding attempts to artificially induce rain by implanting clouds with suitable particles. In Singapore, the NEA said,there are no reliable means to validate the effectiveness of cloud seeding.

"Cloud seeding also requires existing clouds as it cannot generate rain out of thin and dry air. During dry seasons, cloud seeding is less effective due to the lack of suitable clouds for seeding," said the NEA.

Singapore has been choked in haze recently due to smoke from forest fires in Indonesia, with the three-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) breaching the 200-mark on several occasions. Over the last few days, the 24-hour PSI showed air quality in the unhealthy range (101-200).

Hazy conditions eased today with the 24-hr PSI at 76-96, in the moderate range (51-100), at 1pm.

According to the NEA’s 1pm update, the 24-hour PSI for the next 12 hours is expected to be in the high end of the moderate range but may enter the low end of the unhealthy range if unfavourable winds blow in haze from Sumatra.


NEA scotches rumour of cloud seeding for F1 weekend
NEO CHAI CHIN Today Online 18 Sep 15;

SINGAPORE — Debunking a rumour that the authorities are doing cloud seeding to reduce the impact of the haze on the Formula One race this weekend, the National Environment Agency has said no cloud seeding by the Singapore Government has been done, nor are there plans to carry it out.

The rumour is untrue, said the NEA and Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan. “Singapore is so small that even if anybody tried to do it, the rain would almost certainly fall outside Singapore. Singaporeans should beware of malicious people spreading false rumours during a period when anxieties are heightened,” wrote Dr Balakrishnan on Facebook today (Sept 17) as the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) shifted into the moderate range.

At 11pm today, the 24-hour PSI was 69 to 79 and the PM2.5 level was 36 to 47 microgrammes per cubic metre, an improvement over previous days when air quality hovered largely in the unhealthy range. The improvement was due to prevailing winds blowing from the south-east.

The NEA said in an update at 6pm today that the haze has been reduced over central and southern Sumatra, but some haze from Kalimantan has spread westward to the South China Sea east of Singapore.

The 24-hour PSI for tomorrow is likely to be moderate to unhealthy. The prevailing winds today are expected to blow from the east or south-east and occasional hazy conditions can be expected if there is unfavourable wind, said the agency.

Earlier this week, haze from Sumatra was blown in by winds from the south and south-west because of a tropical storm in the South China Sea that shifted wind direction.

On its website, the NEA said there is no reliable way to assess if cloud seeding — which requires the existence of suitable clouds for seeding — is effective for Singapore. “The small size of Singapore and the variability of winds also mean that the induced rain, if any, may not fall directly over our island,” it said.

The NEA also tackled an observation by some members of the public that the PSI does not reflect low visibility and a burning smell during certain periods of time. The measurements of six pollutants — particulate matter (PM10), fine particulate matter (PM2.5), sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone and carbon monoxide — determine the PSI, it said. When there is a burnt smell in the air, the six pollutants may not be the cause, said the NEA, which also monitors other parameters that affect air quality. At a media briefing on Tuesday, the authorities said visibility could be affected by humidity.