As Indonesia is fighting more fires in Sumatra, neighboring Singapore and Malaysia are growing concerned about another possible attack disorder.
Like clockwork, Indonesia has again found itself facing problems with forest fires that have been growing since July 2016. The escalating situation is the second major problem its kind in Indonesia since the crisis at the end of last year, in which fire skyrocketed carbon emissions of the ten nation. At the time, the government announced a plan to reorganize the management of land and the nation's forests.
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellites have detected "hot spots" again Sumatra. The wildfire has burned long enough for the smoke to begin making its way to neighboring countries. As such, Singapore and Malaysia are again beginning to receive the mist of the archipelago.
The spokesman of the agency Disaster Indonesia Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said recently that the mist is floating on the Strait of Malacca and Malaysia experienced a severe influx of mist on August 19. the incident caused the country already moderate to high index of air pollution pick.
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Haze from Indonesia came to Singapore Friday, August 26. The National Agency measured the country's environment his 24-hour pollutant standards Index, which was between 51 and 62 to 10 hours. For a better understanding of what this means, Singaporeans were asked to wear masks outdoors to avoid inhaling harmful air particles.
Firefighters working in Indonesia to extinguish the fire at that time, and the air quality in Singapore improved the following Sunday. It is not known if the levels normalized in Singapore because of human efforts, or environmental factors such as changes in wind direction.
The haze that shrouds Singapore and Malaysia each year is usually caused by illegal practice slash-and-burn in Indonesia, namely Riau. The region is a major center for palm oil and pulp industry, which makes it particularly prone to catch fire.
A "No Haze" Solution?
In response, Natural Resources and Environment Minister of Malaysia, Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, said that Indonesia must change its forest fire laws that allow still burning on land less than 0.8 hectares . He also thinks that the land management rules peat in Indonesia are not effective and must be changed if the nation is serious about resolving the recurring crisis of transboundary disorder.
Environment and Water Resources Minister of Singapore, Masagos Zulkifli, is pushing for a solution "unveiled" in Indonesia. National Disaster Mitigation Agency archipelago recently reported that the number of hotspots in Indonesia increased from what it was last year (2356 hotspots, against 8.247 in 2015). Zulkifli responded by saying that Indonesia should not only reduce hot spots, but do stop occurring altogether.
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Turning to Siti Nurbaya Bakar of Environment and Forestry Ministry of Indonesia said his country respects complaints from neighbors regarding the mist fires in Indonesia. However, Bakar insists that Indonesia can not be responsible for the fact that the mist floats in Malaysia or Singapore. The Minister says Indonesia has worked non-stop to solve the problem, and foreigners should refuse unnecessary comments. It provides foreign officials that the issue is dealt with systematically.
In addition to reducing the number of hot spots, Bakar said the ministry was running a "multi-door" approach to fight against fires. He pointed to penalties and civil actions against offending companies. The minister added that 40 companies were targeted. The government also imposed a temporary moratorium on permits for forest management, palm oil plantations and peatland management.
While firefighters Indonesia are working to extinguish flames in Sumatra, meteorology of the nation, Climatology and Geophysics Agency warned that more haze could be heading to neighboring countries in the five next few days due to a change in wind direction. Singapore and Malaysia should be on the lookout.
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