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Home > News > Environment

Published: Thursday October 29, 2015 MYT 4:40:00 PM

Updated: Thursday October 29, 2015 MYT 4:59:32 PM

Southeast Asia breathes sigh of

relief as rains dampen smog crisis

Jobs

A boat plies along the river past the Marina Bay Sands (centre) as the sky cleared from the haze that has
shrouded Singapore in recent weeks, on October 29, 2015. -AFP

KUALA LUMPUR: Persistent rains have cleared the air across vast stretches of
Southeast Asia that have choked for weeks on hazardous smoke from Indonesian
fires, with officials and citizens expressing hope Thursday the crisis could soon
end.
Parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore enjoyed the cleanest air in two
months, while affected areas of the Philippines and Thailand also gained a respite
from pollution that has sickened hundreds of thousands, disrupted air travel and
fuelled anger at Jakarta.
We can see clouds again! Singapore Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen gushed in a
Facebook posting that include a picture of now-unfamiliar blue skies taken from
his office.
I am sure that all of us in Singapore woke up this morning and felt so good that
we had clear blue skies again. Malaysias top weather forecaster declared the
regions rainy season -- crucial to putting out the annual outbreak of smokebelching Indonesian forest and agricultural fires -- had begun.
We should have blue skies and no more haze, Che Gayah Ismail, director-general
of the countrys Meteorological Department, told AFP, adding that any further
smoke would be blown away from the region.
The fires and resulting region-wide pollution occur to varying degrees each year
during the dry season as vast Indonesian plantation lands are illegally cleared by
burning.

Malaysia's landmark Petronas Twin Towers (right) and commercial buildings are seen on a clear day in Kuala
Lumpur on October 29, 2015. -AFP

Rains welcomed with joy

Experts had warned that this years outbreak was on track to become the worst
yet due to bone-dry conditions caused by the El Nino phenomenon, which alters
weather patterns across the Pacific basin.
Fears had grown that the rainy season could be delayed for months, prolonging
the health and environmental disaster.
Indonesian authorities say 19 people have died either fighting the fires or due to
the smoke, and that half a million Indonesians are suffering from respiratory
illness.
Indonesian officials are yet to declare that the corner had been turned in the battle
against the haze.
But its disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said recent rainfall on
the huge islands of Sumatra and Borneo -- where hundreds of fires have
smouldered since July -- has dramatically reduced the smoke, and that more
precipitation was expected.
Affected communities welcomed this with joy and said grace after two months of
being held captive to haze, Sutopo said in a statement.
The rains there included both natural and artificially induced showers from cloud-

seeding, he added.
The semi-annual crisis brings recurring pressure on Indonesia, which has failed
over the years to rein in the planters accused of starting the fires.
Jakarta agreed earlier this month to accept international help after failing for
weeks to douse the blazes, and has employed dozens of planes and thousands of
personnel on the ground in a fire-fighting campaign.
Residents of Palangkaraya, an Indonesian city on Borneo where the intense fires
have created eerie yellow skies and unbreathable air, expressed relief at seeing
patches of blue up above for the first time.
Schools that were closed for health reasons have begun reopening, and children in
uniforms were seen riding bikes without masks.

A passenger plane prepares to take off from Tjilik Riwut Airport, after intermittent rainfall over the last few days
cleared away the heavy haze which blanketed the city of Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia October 29,
2015. -AFP

Finally I can breathe

Finally I can breathe normally, said Suratmini, 34, a Palangkaraya resident who
like many Indonesians goes by one name.
Its good for the children as well because they can go to school.

Singapores Environment Minister Masagos Zulkifli, where officials have been

particularly critical of Indonesia, said Jakarta must do more to punish plantation
firms in order to prevent the problem recurring.
Attending a regional diplomatic meeting on the issue in Hanoi, he released a
statement calling on Indonesia to provide more information on companies
suspected in the blazes, and enforcement actions that were being taken.
The root cause of fires that produce transboundary haze is commercially driven.
We need to prevent these companies from starting fires, mismanaging land, and
causing harm to people in the region, he said.
Singapore last month launched legal action that could lead to massive fines
against Indonesian companies over the fires.
The US-based World Resources Institute said earlier this month that the fires were
spewing more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere each day than the United
States, the worlds second-largest emitter of the gases blamed for global
warming. -AFP

TAGS / KEYWORDS:
haze, smog, South East Asia

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