Haze eases with rains, but not over yet

Haze eases with rains, but not over yet

SINGAPORE (Reuter): Scattered rains yesterday helped lift a smoky haze that has blanketed Singapore and parts of Malaysia and Indonesia since August by dousing some of the fires causing it.

But they cautioned the smoke, often polluting the region's air to hazardous levels and disrupting outdoor physical activities, could last through October.

"Much will depend on the direction of the wind," said Tan Swan Foo, deputy director of Singapore's Meteorological Department.

"The wind is still blowing to Singapore from the east to south-easterly direction, the source of the haze," he told Reuters. "But we expect the wind to change to a northerly direction by the end of this month or early next month."

Thick smoke from coal and forest fires raging since August in Indonesia's Sumatra island and in Kalimantan, Indonesia's part of Borneo, has blown across southeast Asia, shrouding Malaysia, Singapore and parts of Indonesia.

The haze pushed up Singapore's Pollutants Standard Index (PSI) to a record 142 unhealthy level on Sept. 27. It forced people with bronchial ailments to seek medical care, prompted suspension of schools' physical activities, and canceled some flights and route marches by armed forces.

Singapore's Environment Ministry said yesterday's air quality reached a "good quality level" -- a PSI of 42 -- for the first time since Aug. 20.

Indonesian officials said rains have dampened fires in Kalimantan, regarded as the most fire-ravaged area of that country and a major source of the smoke.

Armed only with water pumps, sticks, spades and one water truck, fire-fighters in Bukit Soeharto national park were still monitoring the smouldering coal beneath the 63,000 hectare (155,675 acre) park.

In Malaysia, the haze had largely lifted as the air quality index dipped over the weekend into the 50s -- the moderate level -- after breaching the 300 hazardous level a week ago.

Malaysia's New Straits Times newspaper, which generally reflects government thinking, warned in a Monday editorial that the clearing air, due to heavy downpours and shifting winds, poses a danger that lessons will not be learned.

"With air quality so dependent on the winds of fate, there will appear little immediate justification for radical action ... The initiative for long-term solutions can evaporate as fast as the problem fades on its own," the newspaper said.