Haze could worsen next month: Govt<\/p>\n
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Haze from forest fires that delayed several flights in Pontianak
\non Saturday could worsen in Kalimantan and Sumatra provinces next
\nmonth due to a lack of rain and continued land clearing,
\nofficials here warned on Sunday.<\/p>\n
The officials blamed local administrations in Sumatra and
\nKalimantan for not taking tough measures to prohibit residents
\nfrom burning forests to clear land for farming.<\/p>\n
\"Our office cannot do anything but warn local administrations
\nthat it is their responsibility to seriously tackle the problem
\nin their own areas,\" Sudariyono, the deputy minister for
\necosystem maintenance at the Office of the State Minister for the
\nEnvironment, said.<\/p>\n
He said several companies could also be held responsible for
\nburning the forest to open up land for plantations, though he
\nrefused to identify the companies.<\/p>\n
The government has banned slash-and-burn land clearance, but
\nmany companies and residents continue to ignore the ban.<\/p>\n
Sudariyono said haze caused by forest and bush fires had
\ncovered parts of Sumatra island and Central, East and West
\nKalimantan for the last several days.<\/p>\n
\"I have received reports that parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan,
\nespecially Central and East Kalimantan, have been covered by a
\nsmoky haze from the forest fires,\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
On Saturday, smoke disrupted at least five flights to and from
\nthe West Kalimantan capital of Pontianak.<\/p>\n
Sudariyono said the haze could be expected to get worse and
\nspread to other islands and neighboring countries because little
\nrain was expected to fall in September, while the burning of
\nforests continued unabated.<\/p>\n
\"The condition could worsen because people in those areas keep
\non burning the forest for farming. In addition, there is no
\nindication that the rainfall will start soon,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said his office had detected numerous new hot spots across
\nKalimantan and Sumatra, but added that he could not provide
\ndetails on the fires until Monday.<\/p>\n
Last June, haze blanketed Riau, Jambi and nearby areas on
\nSumatra island, as well as the western part of Kalimantan. The
\nhaze also spread to neighboring countries Singapore and Malaysia.<\/p>\n
The worst incident of haze occurred in 1997, and to a lesser
\nextent in 1998, when choking smoke enveloped large parts of
\nSoutheast Asia for months, causing serious health problems and
\ndisrupting air and ground traffic.<\/p>\n
Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia have blamed each other for
\nthe haze, which continues to be an annual problem despite joint
\npledges to address the problem.<\/p>\n
Vice President Hamzah Haz has said that Malaysia and Singapore
\nshould share part of the blame for the haze from forest fires,
\naccusing both countries of involvement in illegal logging in
\nIndonesia. The two countries have repeatedly denied this.<\/p>\n
Malaysian Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk
\nAdenan Satem said on Sunday he believed there was large scale
\nopen burning in Sumatra and Kalimantan, and less open burning in
\nthe Malaysian state of Sarawak.<\/p>\n
\"We have banned all open burning on our side and we seek
\ncooperation of the Indonesian authorities to do the same,\" said
\nAdenan as quoted by Malaysia's Star Daily.<\/p>\n
He added that he had written to his counterpart in Indonesia
\nstating Malaysia's concern over the haze.<\/p>\n
Contacted separately, the director of the Indonesian National
\nPolice's antiterror department, Brig. Gen. Suharto, said his
\noffice was searching for suspects in illegal forest burning in
\nRiau and Jambi provinces.<\/p>\n
\"We have completed dossiers on several suspects in the case,
\nincluding a plantation company director who is charged with
\nemploying slash-and-burn land clearing in Riau, which recently
\ncaused widespread smoke,\" he told the Post.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/haze-could-worsen-next-month-govt-1447893297",
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