Haze spreads while govt only hopes for rain

Haze spreads while govt only hopes for rain

The Jakarta Post
Pekanbaru/Jambi/Medan/Jakarta

Haze from cropland and forest fires was spreading on Wednesday to
other parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan, and had begun to blanket
Singapore and Malaysia, delaying more flights in Riau province
and forcing local motorists to wear masks.

But Indonesian authorities appeared powerless in their efforts
to tackle the annual haze and instead hoped heavy rain would put
out the fires.

Ministry of Forestry spokesman Transtoto Handadhari blamed
traditional farmers for starting the fires across Sumatra island,
which then spread to forest areas.

"During the dry season local farmers usually clear the land by
using the slash and burn method at the edge of the forests for
future cultivation. It's a tradition, and it is hard to stop. We
can only hope for rain," he said.

Transtoto did not say whether the farmers or others would face
sanctions for defying a government ban on setting fires to clear
land.

He said his office has assigned special task forces, called
forest fire brigades, to help extinguish the blazes.

However, Riau forestry office deputy head Sudirno admitted
that authorities had not maximized efforts to extinguish the
fires, which he said mostly affected bush areas.

"If the bush fires are overcome, they will not necessarily be
completely extinguished, but could even spread in the undergrowth
to nearby areas. So, it's very difficult to put them out unless
there are heavy rains," he said.

Poor visibility caused by the smoke delayed at least two
flights of Merpati and Jatayu to Sultan Syarif Kasim Airport in
Pekanbaru.

"The two planes should have landed in Pekanbaru at 7:30 a.m.,
but due to the haze they arrived from Medan at 10:15. However,
generally the situation is already normal," airport operator PT
Angkasa Pura II head Sutrisno said.

He said visibility was 400 meters by 7 a.m and increased to
700 meters two hours later, while at 11 a.m. it further improved
to 1,700 meters.

At least eight flights were delayed in Pekanbaru earlier on
Tuesday and another was diverted to Medan when visibility reduced
to 300 meters, as haze drifted toward neighboring Malaysia.

Malaysia Education Minister Hishamuddin Hussein said on
Wednesday he would consider closing several schools if the air
quality deteriorated further.

Southern Malacca state chief minister Mohamed Ali Rustam has
ordered outdoor school activities to stop temporarily.

"Asthmatic patients and old folk are encouraged to stay
indoors while commuters are advised to wear masks on the road as
a preventive measure," Mohamed Ali said as quoted by the Star
newspaper.

Shifting winds brought hazy conditions to Singapore from the
fires on Sumatra, but the air quality was still deemed safe,
environmental officials said on Wednesday.

The haze is expected to prevail in Singapore over the next few
days, the National Environment Agency (NEA) was quoted by AFP as
saying.

Singapore has protested to Indonesia over the smoke. "The
complaint by Singapore continues to alert us of the haze
problem," Sudirno said in Pekanbaru.

But Vice President Hamzah Haz played down the protest, saying
it was not unusual if Singapore and Malaysia were affected by the
haze because the two countries benefited from illegal logs from
Indonesia.

Asked whether Indonesia should apologize to the two neighbors,
he said while visiting Pekanbaru, "We should probably discuss it
first".

Though thinner in Pekanbaru, smoke also shrouded parts of
Sumatra, including Jambi and North Sumatra provinces.

"The condition causes black smoke if the fires spread quickly
and are not extinguished," senior Jambi forestry official Joko
Fajar said.

Local meteorologists warned the haze in North Sumatra could
worsen during the start of next month's dry season.

Despite the serious 1997-1998 forest fires, which drew
worldwide attention with funding and firefighting equipment
received, haze has remained an annual problem for Indonesia.

"The haze problem is complex," said Luca Tacconi, a senior
scientist for the Centre for International Forestry Research
(CIFOR).

"You have the economic benefit that comes from burning crop
and plantation lands and then it is very difficult to enforce the
law in Indonesia as well," he told DPA.