Malaysia: Hot spell to continue

New Straits Times 8 Feb 14;

KUALA LUMPUR: The hot weather in Malaysia is expected to continue for the next seven days as the northeast monsoon will be coming to an end, said the Malaysian Meteorological Department.

Its Central Forecast Office director, Muhammad Helmi Abdullah, said the hot and dry season was a normal phenomenon during this period because of the lack of cloud formation.

"Less cloud formation causes the public to experience high temperatures in the morning and low temperatures at night as there are no clouds to cover them in the morning or to trap heat in the night.

"The temperature changes from day to night are intense as some places experience differences by up to 15ºC compared with only 7ºC to 8ºC on normal days."

He said the extreme changes in temperature might affect people's health. The normal temperature is 33ºC but the temperature in certain areas is now 34ºC to 35ºC .

"Those living in urban areas will feel the effects of the hot weather the most," said Helmi .

He said the hot and dry spell also occurred in several countries, such as Indonesia and Singapore, which went without rain for 20 days, the longest dry spell in five years.

In Malaysia, he said, small amounts of rainfall occurred in remote areas at Sarawak, Perak, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan.

Read more: Hot spell to continue - General - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/nation/general/hot-spell-to-continue-1.479304#ixzz2shKBu4Bq

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Indonesia: Residents on alert as haze strikes again

Severianus Endi and Rizal Harahap The Jakarta Post 7 Feb 14;

While thousands of people in Java are facing an extreme rainy season and flash floods damaging their homes and farms, people in other parts of the country have been choked in thick haze from forest fires.

The haze in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, has prompted the city administration to close kindergartens and elementary schools from Thursday to Saturday.

Pontianak Mayor Sutarmidji has also urged residents not to burn trash, which could add to worsening air pollution.

Pontianak Environmental Agency (BLH) head, Imran, said the intensity of haze on Thursday was higher than Wednesday. The Air Pollution Standard Index (ISPU) showed conditions were between “very unhealthy” and “hazardous” at certain times.

“These are very unhealthy conditions. The ISPU level was above 200 at 11 p.m., while the hazardous level was over 300 between 12:30 a.m. and 2 a.m. During normal conditions the ISPU level is between 0 and 50, and moderate conditions between 50 and 100,” said Imran.

Based on observations by the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) Supadio Pontianak office via satellite images on Feb. 4, hot spots were detected in 97 locations, some of them in peatland areas on the fringe of Pontianak. It has not rained in the area for almost a month.

Pontianak resident Tavib has anticipated the pollution by buying a pack of masks. Every time he leaves home, he always bring the masks, which he has moistened to protect his lungs.

“I’ve learned from the previous haze that hit the city in 2007,” Tavib said.

Haze also caused flight delays on Thursday when 12 flights — six departures and six incoming
flights — were delayed due to poor visibility.

An early flight from Jakarta to Pontianak was rerouted back to Jakarta by the Supadio International Airport authorities due to the dense haze.

State-run airport management firm PT Angkasa Pura II operational division head at the airport, Syarif Usmulyani, Alqadrie confirmed to The Jakarta Post on Thursday that the thick haze in the morning had caused visibility of only 200 meters.

PT Angkasa Pura II was forced to close Supadio airport for more than two hours on Thursday. At 6 a.m. visibility was 200 meters and gradually improved every 30 minutes.

Riau is also facing similar problem as the Pekanbaru BMKG detected 261 hot spots across the province on Thursday. Head of data and information division at the Pekanbaru BMKG, Slamet Riyadi, said most hot spots were seen in the Bengkalis, Pelalawan, Siak and Indragiri Hilir regencies.

“The hot spots have spread to eight of the 12 regencies/cities in Riau. The hot spots are also detected in Rokan Hilir, Indragiri Hulu and Kampar regencies and Pekanbaru city,” Slamet said, adding the dry season would last until mid-March.

Although most areas in the province have been blanketed by smog, it is unlikely the haze will reach neighboring countries at this moment.

“Malaysia and Singapore are still safe [from haze] as the smog is heading southeast. The wind pattern most likely changes around May or June,” he added.

Riau Health Agency head Zainal Arifin said his office had procured 500,000 masks to anticipate a worst-case scenario.

Land and forest fires have for years been a major problem for Riau as smallholders and plantation firms allow slash-and-burn farming methods. In 2013, more than 10,000 residents suffered acute respiratory infections (ARIs) due to haze. The fires have also sparked diplomatic tensions between Indonesia and neighboring countries.

Meanwhile, in Batam, Riau Islands, the prolonged dry season has also caused droughts in a number of areas on the island, causing widespread bush fires.

BMKG Hang Nadim head Philip Mustamu said Batam was categorized as a non-seasonal region, with rain lacking in the months of January and February.

Batam Free Trade Zone Management Agency (BPK FTZ) spokesman and One-Roof Integrated Services (PTSP) director Dwi Djoko Wiwoho said the fire-fighting unit had apparently received many reports of fires near housing areas.

Fadli contributed to the story from Batam.

Hot spots in Riau rise to 261
Rizal Harahap, The Jakarta Post 7 Feb 14;

The number of hot spots in Riau has increased significantly from 78 to 261, according to the latest satellite observation.

Head of Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) information and data Slamet Riyadi said most of the hotspots were spotted in Bengkalis Regency with 127 spots, followed by Pelalawan Regency with 59 spots, Siak with 44 spots and Indragiri Hilir with 25 spots.

He added that a lesser number of hot spots were also seen in Rokan Hilir, Indragiri Hulu, Kampar and Pekanbaru city.

“The hotspots are seen in eight out of 12 regencies in the province,” he said.

He then warned that the number would keep growing as the province had entered its first phase of the dry season. He said this condition would likely last until mid-March.

“After that we will experience some rain closely followed by the second phase of the dry season,” he said.

Despite the entire province being blanketed by hot spots, Slamet said that the haze would not reach neighboring countries like Malaysia and Singapore in the immediate future.

“Malaysia and Singapore will be safe from the haze. The spread of the haze is so far only local,” he said.

Commenting on this, Riau Health Agency head Zainal Arifin said he had prepared a stock of 500,000 masks although there had been no request from regencies/cities hit by the haze.

“To date, everything is still within our reach. However we must be well prepared at all times,” he said.

Extraordinary status declared as forest, land fires rage
Rizal Harahap and Jon Afrizal The Jakarta Post Pekanbaru/Jambi 8 Feb 14;

The regency administration of Meranti Islands, Riau province, has declared the forest and field fires in the region as an extraordinary situation (KLB), with the flames becoming increasingly difficult to control.

Meranti Islands Regent Irwan Nasir said the fires now covered 16 subdistricts in the districts of Rangsang, Rangsang Pesisir, Tasik Putri Puyu and West Tebing Tinggi, burning over 2,000 hectares of forests as well as rubber and sago plantations.

“It’s really severe. We are overwhelmed, no longer capable of handling it,” Irwan said.

He said his administration continued trying to extinguish the fires but had technically already surrendered due to limited equipment, human resources and nature.

He also said he had coordinated with the provincial administration and central government to send help to modify the weather. The fire brigades — including the one deployed by PT National Sago Prima (NSP) — were working at the maximum but the fires continued to spread.

“Our only hope is artificial rain,” Irwan said.

PT NSP spokesperson Setio Budi Utomo said his company would rent a helicopter to water bomb and help extinguish the fires. “We’re really overwhelmed. The 100 firefighters and 20 water sprayers are unable to halt the fires,” he said.

Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) Riau branch executive director Riko Kurniawan blamed the fires on the negligence of PT NSP, a subsidiary of the Sampoerna Agro Group.

He said based on Walhi’s investigation, the fires in the area belonging to PT NSP started with a small fire at K 26 block in Kepau Baru, East Tebing Tinggi on Jan. 31.

Separately, acting Riau Governor Djohermansyah Djohan said his administration had sent 100 personnel with firefighting equipment to help extinguish the fires in Meranti.

He added the provincial administration had declared emergency standby status for haze to intensify the handling of forest and land fires in the region. “We’ve prepared
Rp 10 billion (US$822,000) for disaster mitigation purposes, including for floods and haze,” he said.

Meanwhile in Jambi, haze has covered the city as forest and field fires in neighboring provinces expand.

The local office of the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) reported that visibility on Friday was at only two meters.

There were only two hot spots in Jambi, according to the BMKG, but hundreds of others were seen in the neighboring provinces of Riau, South Sumatra and West Sumatra.

On Thursday, Jambi Deputy Governor Fachrori Umar received the visit of Singaporean consul for Indonesia Mark Low and Singaporean Ministry of Environment representative Tay Romire to discuss handling the haze.

Tay Romire said he was satisfied with the meeting and hoped cooperation between the Singaporean government and Jambi administration could be increased in the future.

Haze has also been thickening in Pontianak City, West Kalimantan. The head of the Supadio Meteorology Station, Bambang Hargiyono, said haze had disturbed flight activities for the last three days.

“Visibility is only 200 meters in the morning while for take-off and landing purposes visibility needs to be 1,000 meters at the minimum,” Bambang said.

West Kalimantan Forestry Agency secretary Lazarus Marpaung said although haze had worsened in Pontianak, no hot spots were found in the city.

He predicted that the haze had come from the 100 hot spots detected in neighboring Kubu Raya regency.

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Malaysia: New flora and fauna species found

Tan Cheng Li and Isabelle Lai The Star 8 Feb 14;

PETALING JAYA: Botanists have discovered two new plant species and a new species of gecko within an undisturbed portion of limestone forest on Gunung Kanthan that many fear will be quarried in the near future.

Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) plant taxonomist Dr Ruth Kiew said the new discoveries were further proof that the area, known as Zone C of Gunung Kanthan, near Ipoh, has critical conservation value.

Kiew said they had found a diminutive herb with purple flowers (Gymnostachyum nov) from the Acanthaceae family, and a tree (Vatica nov) from the Dipterocarpaceae family.

“In addition to these two new species, Zone C is also home to nine species on Malaysia’s Red List of Endangered Plants. They are in danger of extinction,” she told The Star.

Kiew said the find was made during one of several plant surveys last year in Zones C and D at the southern portion of Gunung Kanthan to compile a complete record of all plant species there.

Botanists also suspect that the critically endangered Paraboea vulpina of the African Violet family had gone extinct on Gunung Kanthan due to quarrying in the northern portion of the mountain.

The plant was recorded there by the Malaysian Nature Society in its 1991 study, and with its extinction at Kanthan, only two other population sites on other limestone hills remain.

American herpetologist Dr Lee Grismer, who had led a group of local and foreign biologists in surveys of the area last July, has also discovered a new species of gecko there.

Named the Gua Kanthan bent-toed gecko (Cyrtodactylus guakanthanensis), the 7cm-long lizard bears five dark bands on its body and seeks refuge in cracks on the limestone walls.

Grismer said the species appeared to be restricted to the hill, as it was not seen in nearby limestone hills. This makes it the second endemic fauna species in the area, besides the trapdoor spider Liphistius kanthan.

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Best of our wild blogs: 7 Feb 14

Fri, 07 Feb 2014, 4.00pm @ CR1: David Bickford on “Discovering Biodiversity and Exploring Extinction” from The Biodiversity crew @ NUS

Toddycats are back with Love MacRitchie Walks 2014!
from Toddycats!

Black Baza casting pellet?
from Bird Ecology Study Group

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Man fined S$41,000 for illegally keeping 32 wild animals in HDB flat

Today Online 6 Feb 14;

SINGAPORE — A man has been fined of S$41,000 for the possession of illegal wildlife, the highest penalty that has been sentenced to a private individual for this offence.

Acting on a public tip off, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) had seized 32 wild animals from the man’s HDB flat on June 3 last year. The animals seized included a slow loris, black-tailed prairie dogs, ornate horned frogs and yellow-footed tortoises.

Investigations showed that all the animals had been imported into Singapore without the relevant import permits. Nineteen of them were endangered species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and would require additional CITES import permits from the AVA.

As Singapore is a signatory to the CITES, it is an offence to be in possession or to trade in any illegally imported or acquired CITES species. The penalty is a fine of up to S$50,000 per specimen (up to of S$500,000) and/or jail of up to two years.

The AVA has asked members of the public who have information on illegal wildlife activities, to contact AVA at 6325 7625.

Man fined record amount for illegal wildlife possession
Channel NewsAsia 6 Feb 14;

SINGAPORE: A man was fined S$41,000 on Thursday for the possession of illegal wildlife.

The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) of Singapore said in a statement that the fine was the highest penalty that had been imposed on an individual for the offence.

Acting on a public tip off, AVA inspected an HDB flat on 3 June 2013, and seized 32 wild animals from the unit.

AVA's investigations showed that all the animals had been imported into Singapore without the relevant import permits.

Furthermore, of the 32 animals, 19 were classified as endangered species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which would require additional CITES import permits from AVA on top of the import permit.

A permit is required for the import and export or re-export of animals to and from Singapore.

As Singapore is a CITES signatory, it is an offence to possess or to trade in any illegally imported or acquired CITES species.

Those found guilty of the offence face a fine of up to S$50,000 per specimen, not exceeding an aggregate of S$500,000.

A jail term of up to two years may also apply.

- CNA/al

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NHB launches tour of abandoned war site in Marsiling

Today Online 7 Feb 14;

SINGAPORE — With no walking tracks in sight, the dense Marsiling jungle is one area many city slickers would probably give a miss.

But amid all the thick vegetation lies an abandoned war site that was once used as a fuel depot by the British Royal Air Force, and later the Imperial Japanese Army for their aviation fleets during World War II.

To commemorate the 72nd anniversary of the Battle of Singapore this year, the National Heritage Board (NHB) has launched the guided Marsiling Tunnels Tour covering the site, which has several sealed tunnels.

Those who join the tour assemble at Kranji MRT Station and are taken by bus to the jungle. They then trek a 100m to the site.

Although the site has several tunnels, tour participants will not able to explore them since they have been sealed.

The NHB said the tunnels were last seen open in 2008. It is not known who sealed the tunnels.

When asked if the board is planning to unseal the tunnels for future use, NHB Group Director for Policy Alvin Tan said: “The NHB is presently embarking on a fact-finding exercise, and will explore the possibility of opening the tunnels with the relevant agency (or) agencies, subject to an assessment of the tunnels’ structural integrity and other safety considerations.”

Based on wartime intelligence reports and declassified documents obtained from the United Kingdom’s national archives, NHB researchers found that the Marsiling site, despite its close proximity to a British naval base, was used as a fuel reserve facility for the Royal Air Force and not for the Royal Navy.

During the Japanese Occupation of Singapore in the early 1940s, the Imperial Army modified the facility and included five tanks to store fuel.

While most war structures built by the Japanese were destroyed after they surrendered in 1945, the facility at the site is still intact because of its remote and isolated location, said Mr Tan.

Apart from the Marsiling Tunnels Tour, four other tours will be available to the public between Feb 8 and 15. They include a visit to the Tiong Bahru Air Raid Shelter and a night tour at Opium Hill, where a battle between the Malay Regiment and Japanese soldiers raged. All the tours are free of charge.

For more information on the Battle of Singapore Tours and registration details, visit www.nhb.gov.sg and www.museums.com.sg.

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Chance of El Nino conditions seen after Northern Hemisphere spring: U.S. forecaster

Chris Prentice PlanetArk 7 Feb 14;

U.S. weather forecaster Climate Prediction Center (CPC) said on Thursday there was an increasing chance of the El Nino weather pattern after expecting neutral conditions through the Northern Hemisphere spring 2014.

In its monthly report, the CPC maintained its outlook that El Nino was unlikely through the spring, but noted that a change in temperatures "portend warming in the coming months."

That represented a change from the CPC's previous outlook of neutral conditions through summer 2014.

El Nino can cause flooding and heavy rains in the United States and South America and can trigger drought conditions in Southeast Asia and Australia.

(Reporting by Chris Prentice in New York; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

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Sea wall 'eco-engineering' can help boost biodiversity

Mark Kinver BBC News 6 Feb 14;

Slight modifications to sea defences - at little or no extra cost - can boost the level of biodiversity found in intertidal zones, a study has shown.

Researchers found that attaching artificial rock pools to the structures created habitats suitable for mobile creatures, such as starfish or crabs.

They added that they hoped the results would encourage future designs to incorporate "ecological engineering".

The findings have been published in the Marine Ecology Progress Series journal.

"When we looked into the economics, more than 80% of money that is spent to protect coastlines from climatic changes is spent building new sea walls, increasing the height, stability and length of existing ones," explained co-author Mark Browne, an ecologist based at the US-based National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis.

"This is because we want to protect human lives and we also want to protect the important infrastructure," he told BBC News.

"But when we looked at how those seawalls were being built, they were being built according to engineering and financial criteria, not really on their capacity to support marine life."

Dr Browne, who was based at the University of Sydney for the research, said colleague and co-author Prof Gee Chapman had spent many years examining how plants and animals found in the intertidal area of shorelines were affected by engineering.

"The overwhelming evidence she had was that there were major differences between the types of organisms that you find on seawalls compared with those on natural shorelines," he said.

"One of the major differences was the absence of mobile organisms - such as limpets, starfish and crabs."

So the researchers set up an experiment to find out why this was the case and what could be done to mitigate the impact of the structures.

Previous studies had shown that when artificial shorelines replaced the natural ones, there was usually a change of species locally as sedimentary habitat was replaced with hard materials.

"Although many native species live on the hard substratum, they are not usually the same species that live in or on soft substratum," they wrote.

They suggested that the changes to the composition of organisms living on or near the structure may be the result of the steep sides of the sea defences, limiting the intertidal area available to species.

"Alternatively, the walls may lack important intertidal habitats microhabitats," they added. "The most obvious are rock pools."

In order to test the idea whether simple additions to otherwise featureless sea walls in Sydney Harbour would make the structures more biodiversity friendly, the researchers installed a number of large, concrete flowerpots to create artificial rock pools.

They observed: "The size of the pot, its height on the wall and its location affected the assemblages that developed, with greater abundances and diversity of organisms in shallower pots and those at mid-shore levels."

Dr Browne explained: "We have shown quite clearly that you are able to improve levels of biodiversity by more than 110% and the size of the pot and the location it is situated matters.

"If we are going to be spending more than US $144bn each year to build new [flood defences] or increase the height or stability of existing ones and 80% of those funds on coastal defences, we really need to be starting to think about how we can put these types of ecological engineering approaches into practice.

"The measures can be added to the work with little or no additional cost without diminishing the integrity of the structure."

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Best of our wild blogs: 6 Feb 14

Pulau Semakau Workshop
from The Leafmonkey Workshop

Malayan Water Monitor with a collar
from Bird Ecology Study Group

Butterflies Galore! : Cruiser
from Butterflies of Singapore

German Girl Shrine (Ubin Island)
from Rojak Librarian

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Dry, hot weather could have caused fishes' death: PUB

Channel NewsAsia 5 Feb 14;

SINGAPORE: Hot, dry weather may have caused the death of some 400 fishes in the Kallang River at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park on Tuesday.

National water agency PUB said in statement on Wednesday that the recent dry spell could have led to lower levels of dissolved oxygen in the water.

The recent hot weather in Singapore is due to a dry phase of the Northeast Monsoon season, which is predicted to persist for another two more weeks.

Only two types of fish -- Tilapias and Mayan Cichlids -- were affected.

The PUB said the fishes did not die from a drop in water quality or contamination, and it is continuing with its investigations.

The clean-up of the river began on Tuesday and was completed at 3pm on Wednesday.

The PUB has urged the public to continue with water activities in the river as it is safe for use and the agency will continue to monitor the situation closely.

- CNA/rw

Hot weather may have caused fish deaths in Bishan-Ang Mo Kio park
Today Online 6 Feb 14;

SINGAPORE — Hundreds of dead fish were found floating in the scenic river at the Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park yesterday, with national water agency PUB attributing the mass deaths to the hot and dry weather.

Several residents in Bishan said they were surprised to see clusters of dead fish floating in the usually clean river, with some wondering whether the water had been contaminated. Others had spotted the dead fish on Tuesday afternoon.

“It’s the first time we are seeing anything like this in our river,” said Madam Karen Seah, 56.

Following reports of the sighting on Tuesday morning, the PUB said it immediately deployed contractors to clean up the section of the river between Marymount Road and Bishan Road.

After collecting water samples from the river, “laboratory results showed that the water quality is not affected and there is no contamination”, a PUB spokesperson said.

“However, due to the hot and dry weather, there are lower levels of dissolved oxygen in the water (and) that could have led to the death of the fish. The two species of fish affected are Tilapia and Mayan Cichlid. About 400 fish were affected,” the spokesperson added.

TODAY reported yesterday that the dry spell in Singapore over the past few weeks had prompted the PUB to ramp up the supply of NEWater and desalinated water to maintain water levels in the reservoirs.

When TODAY visited the Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park yesterday afternoon, workers were seen cleaning up the area, picking up the dead fish near the lower end of the river, opposite Block 221 on Bishan Street 23.

While the change in oxygen levels in the water had a fatal effect on the two fish species, it did not appear to affect other marine life, with catfish and turtles spotted yesterday swimming in the river, which is part of the Kallang River.

Dr Tan Heok Hui, from the National University of Singapore’s Department of Biological Sciences, said this was because “oxygen demand varies for different species”.

For instance, catfish and terrapins breathe air the same way as humans do. Thus, both were not affected by the oxygen content in the water, he said.

The PUB said it released more water from Lower Peirce Reservoir into Kallang River yesterday to improve the circulation and the low dissolved oxygen levels arising from the dry weather.

With clean-up work at the river completed, the PUB spokesperson said: “It is safe for the public to continue with water activities at Kallang River @ Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park. PUB will continue to monitor the situation closely.”

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Volcanic ash affecting several areas in Malaysia

The Star 6 Feb 14;

PETALING JAYA: The Department of Environment (DOE) has recorded unhealthy and moderate API readings at several locations across Malaysia following a thin layer of ash cloud blowing from a Sumatran volcano located 271km west of Pulau Pangkor.

The highest API was recorded at SK Jalan Pegoh in Ipoh, Perak at 124 while Cheras, Kuala Lumpur reached 107, breaching an unhealthy level, followed by Nilai, Negeri Sembilan at 96, 95 in Banting, Selangor, 87 in Putrajaya and 86 in Seremban, according to its website.

Other API readings recorded were 83 in Malacca city, 72 in Sri Aman, Sarawak and 71 at both Bukit Rambai, Malacca and Jalan Tasek Ipoh, Perak as at 5pm yesterday.

API reading of below 50 is regarded as good, 50-100 (moderate), 100-200 (unhealthy), 200-300 (very unhealthy), and above 300 (hazardous).

The Meteorological Department in a statement on Monday had said that volcanic ash from Mount Sinabung, which erupted over the weekend and again on Monday, could be blown towards the southern states due to a northwesterly wind.

An advisory by the department had been sent to the aviation industry as the ash could affect flights and reduce visibility.

The peak of the volcano located in north Sumatra is 2,450m above sea level. AFP reported that 15 people were killed when Sinabung erupted over the weekend, shooting hot ash and rocks into the air.

Local authorities had evacuated about 30, 000 people.

Sinabung, which had been sporadically erupting since September, is one of 129 active volcanoes in Indonesia.

The DOE also recorded moderate API readings in several states including Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Malacca, Pahang, Perlis, Penang, Terengganu, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.

The department said that there was no significant effect on air quality due to the ash cloud from the Sumatran volcano.

“Referring to areas which appeared to be affected by haze in Klang Valley, the department said it was due to dust and particles during hot weather. We also found no open burning that could cause haze in Klang Valley,” it said in a statement.

46 hotspots were also detected nationwide by the NOAA-18 Satellite and shown on the Meteorological Service Singapore’s website as at 4pm yesterday.

Malaysia: Current haze from local sources
New Straits Times 6 Feb 14;

KUALA LUMPUR: The current hazy spells are caused by local elements and has nothing to do with the eruption of Mount Sinabung in Indonesia.

The Malaysian Meteorological Department Central Forecast Office director Muhammad Helmi Abdullah said the cause of the haze included open-burning, emissions from vehicles and industrial gas release.

Debris from Mount Sinabung and the forest fire in the Riau province, he said, would not adversely affect Malaysia.

"The situation will be bad only at areas close to these disaster zones.

"The mild winds from Indonesia are not strong enough to bring massive amounts of ash here.

"We do not predict the haze would worsen, as it is currently the northeast monsoon season, where wind is coming from China."

Helmi said the wind from northwest could transport only small haze particles to Malaysia and that at the most, only the southern part of Peninsular Malaysia would be affected.

The air quality in Seremban, Negri Sembilan and Cheras, Kuala Lumpur at 5pm yesterday, reached "unhealthy" levels with the Air Pollutant Index (API) recording readings of above 100.

The Department of Environment (DoE) website listed the API readings for both areas at 103 and 108 respectively.

The air quality in 23 areas was recorded at a moderate level, with API readings of between 51 and 100.

The department said the haze was caused by suspended particles in the air because of the hot and dry weather as well as human activities.

It also said the stagnant state of the atmosphere and the topography of the Klang Valley caused the suspended particles in the air to be trapped and not dispersed quickly.

Following the current air condition, DoE has enabled the Open Burning Prevention Action Plan in all states.

Hot and dry weather expected throughout M'sia until Monday
Patrick Lee The Star 6 Feb 14;

PETALING JAYA: It is going to be hot and dry in most parts of Malaysia, with scorching afternoons to be followed by cold nights.

“It’s going to be dry for most of the regions. Some showers here and there, but mostly dry and hot weather,” said National Weather Forecast Centre director Muhammad Helmi Abdullah,

Muhammad said the dry spell was caused by regional wind patterns that were not conducive for rainy weather.

These, he said, were attributed to an inactive monsoon trough; a lack of a monsoon surge from China and the non-influence of easterly winds from the Western Pacific Ocean.

He added that rain clouds appearing north of Australia might have also been responsible for drawing moisture from our region, further drying the weather here.

Muhammad said lack of clouds in the region meant that cold nights and hot afternoons were going to be common.

As an example, he said rural areas such as Kuala Krai and Chuping may experience temperatures below 20°C.

This, he said, might also hold true for northern sides of Peninsula Malaysia and the eastern and western parts of Sabah.

“There will be some fluctuations in wind pattern, but we don’t expect much different weather for the next few days,” he said, adding that widespread rain was not expected.

According to a list by the Meteorological Department, it has not rained in more than 50 areas in all states in the peninsula for five or more consecutive days as of Feb 4.

They include Padang Besar, Langkawi, Seberang Prai Utara, Petaling, Klang, Kepong, Jasin, Cameron Highlands, Muar, Besut and Kota Baru.

According to the Meteorological Department’s website, Kuala Lumpur was expected to see a constant maximum temperature of 33°C from now until Feb 10, with no rain on the horizon.

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Indonesia: Riau Haze Back Again as Dry Season Sets In

Jakarta Globe 6 Feb 14;

Jakarta. Heavy smog has been reported in the provinces of Riau, West Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan from suspected slash-and-burn forest clearing, reviving the specter of the diplomatic row sparked by the same problem last year.

Tri Budiarto, the deputy for disaster management at the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), said in Jakarta on Wednesday that those regions had for the past two weeks been experiencing a dry spell, while the rest of the country was hit by torrential rains causing widespread flooding.

“What we’re seeing in Riau, West Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan is local weather that’s different from the general weather across the country,” he said.

“Elsewhere it’s raining, but there it’s already dry.”

The extended spell of days with no heavy rain is believed to have encouraged residents to begin clearing land for farming, Tri said, with most setting forest fires as the easiest means of doing this.

The BNPB has recorded haze from forest fires in the Riau districts of Bengkalis and Meranti and the town of Dumai, as well as in the Central Kalimantan district of Pontianak and two other districts in Central Kalimantan.

“We’ve notified the local offices of the BNPB in all three provinces, and they’ve begun observing the spread of the fires and the haze,” Tri said.

He said the provincial disaster mitigation agencies, or BPBD, were working with other local authorities to stop the spread of the fires and to be on the alert for fires burning out of control.

Forest fires in Riau last June generated immense amounts of smoke that drifted across the Malacca Strait, shrouding Singapore and parts of Malaysia and Thailand for several days, and sending air pollution indexes there to record highs.

The conditions prompted officials from Singapore and Indonesia to trade diplomatic blows over who was responsible for the thick smog covering much of the region. Singapore criticized Jakarta for failing to curb the annual fires, while Indonesian officials alleged that the plantation companies accused of setting the fires were registered in Singapore and Malaysia.

At the time, several individuals were named suspects by the police for setting some of the fires, but no prosecutions have taken place.

In Pekanbaru, the capital of Riau province, officials recorded 61 fire hot spots as of Sunday, following a week of heavy smog.

The local office of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) said the most hot spots, each indicating a major fire, were in Bengkalis district, which had 29, followed by Siak district, Indragiri Hilir (nine), Pelalawan (eight), and Rokan Hilir with three hot spots.

The number of hot spots is expected to increase, with the BMKG saying the rainy season had effectively ended in Riau.

Officials at Pekanbaru’s Sultan Syarif Kasim II Airport said visibility was down as a result of the haze, but not to the point that flights would have to be grounded or redirected to other airports.

However, in Pontianak, the West Kalimantan capital, heavy smog prompted officials at the city’s Supadio Airport to ground seven flights on Wednesday morning because of poor visibility.

Chandra Dista Wiradi, the airport’s general manager, told Tribunnews.com that flights scheduled to take off in early the morning had to be delayed for two hours until the haze lifted somewhat.

He said 700 passengers were affected by the delay.

The local office of the BMKG has recorded 55 hot spots in neighboring Kubu Raya district.

Indonesia: Haze back in Riau as farmers slash and burn
Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja, The Straits Times/ANN, Jakarta Post 6 Feb 14;

An unusual dry spell in Riau over the past fortnight has seen farmers taking the opportunity to start fires to clear land, creating haze over the city of Dumai and elsewhere in the Indonesian province second-closest to Singapore.

Dumai was at the epicentre of the worst haze in the region in years last June, when air pollutant levels hit record highs in nearby Singapore and Malaysia.

On Wednesday morning, more intense haze was reported in West Kalimantan, and flights at Pontianak's Supadio airport were disrupted for several hours due to low visibility.

The new Riau fires suggest that the root cause of last year's severe transboundary haze has yet to be resolved, even as officials step up action against offenders.

Open burning is against Indonesian law but the law is widely flouted.

"Farmers used the two weeks without rain to carry out slash- and-burn," Tri Budiarto, the National Disaster Management Agency's deputy for emergency management, said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

"We are closely monitoring the situation in these areas."

So far, Singapore has been spared, but experienced slightly hazy conditions Wednesday morning, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said in a statement.

With the northeast monsoon prevailing, the likelihood that Singapore will be affected by the haze is low, said an NEA spokesman.

The air pollutant index in Dumai, some 270km north-west of Singapore, fell from 186 on Tuesday morning to 89 on Wednesday. A reading above 100 is deemed unhealthy.

The Bengkalis and Meranti Islands districts, south-east of Dumai, also saw haze from burning peatland. The area has many oil palm plantations.

This is usually Indonesia's rainy season, which tends to last till March.

But Riau and West and Central Kalimantan are instead seeing raging fires even as disaster workers tackle floods across Java.

The local authorities in Riau and affected areas of Kalimantan have appealed to residents to wear a mask outdoors.

Dumai residents such as Rahimi, who is in her 30s, fear a repeat of last year's severe haze, when many people suffered respiratory infections.

"We are worried this haze will spread and stay like it did last year," she said.

Riau Disaster Mitigation Agency head Said Saqlul Amri said that a recent drop in hot spots detected by satellite was likely to be momentary as the hot weather looked set to continue - a point also made by weather forecasters in Pontianak.

The Jakarta Post reported that, apart from forests and farms, seven hot spots were spotted in oil palm plantations and forest concessions.

Air quality drops, health at risk
Rizal Harahap, The Jakarta Post Pekanbaru 5 Feb 14;

Residents living in a number of regions in Riau province have been reminded of the dangers of inhaling haze from forest and peat fires, which has caused air quality to drop.

In Dumai city, the quality of air on Tuesday was categorized as unhealthy and sunlight was obstructed by the haze. Based on the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI), the air quality touched 186 PSI in the morning.

“Air pollution exceeded the normal tolerable level, which is 100 PSI,” Dumai Health Office head Marjoko Santoso said.

On Monday, nearly 7 hectares of the Wisata Dumai forest conservation area was razed by fire.

“Residents should be more careful when engaged in outdoor activities and if they have to be outdoors, wear a mask,” said Marjoko.

“Besides respiratory issues, the haze and dust can also cause eye irritation. Residents must wear a mask and something to cover their heads, such as a helmet, when outdoors,” he added.

In Siak regency, the local health office has been distributing masks to motorists traveling on main roads so as to minimize the impacts of the haze. Office head Tony Candra urged residents, especially parents with toddlers, to cease outdoor activities.

Separately, Riau Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) head Said Saqlul Amri said the latest satellite images showed there were 62 hot spots in Riau stood, compared to the previous count of 93. The majority were in Meranti Islands, followed by Bengkalis and Pelalawan.

“The drop is most likely momentary, as Riau is still experiencing hot weather,” he said.

Besides hot spots detected in forests and on farms, seven hot spots were spotted in oil palm plantations owned by five major private companies. In the concession areas of Industrial Forests (HTI), 16 hot spots were seen, while four others were found in production forest concessions (HPH).

“All companies have been asked to tackle the fires in their respective concessions. According to law, firefighting and anticipation is the companies’ responsibility,” said Amri.

“All plantation and forestry companies are required to have their own firefighting teams. In the event of fire, they must be prepared to extinguish the fire,” he added.

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