RI takes action against forest fires

RI takes action against forest fires

SINGAPORE (Reuters): Indonesia is taking action to curb fires raging in Sumatra and Kalimantan which have been driving up regional pollution levels, Singapore's environment ministry said on Wednesday.

"Indonesia reported that they had already activated a 24-hour command post to monitor the fire situation, mobilized helicopters to check the hot spots and issued warning letters to forest concessionaires and plantation owners against using fire to clear land," the environment ministry said in a statement.

"They have also taken action to mitigate the fires," it said. Officials from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the ASEAN secretariat held a video conference on Tuesday to discuss ways of tackling the fires and smoke haze accompanying it.

Indonesia told the meeting that it was also considering a proposal to ban open burning during the dry season between July and September.

Indonesia drew harsh criticism from its neighbors in 1997 when smoke from fires lit by slash-and-burn farmers blanketed large parts of Southeast Asia, hurting tourism and prompting health concerns across the region.

Skies over Thailand and Malaysia were blackened by smoke from plantation fires through much of last week. Favorable winds have helped keep Singapore's pollution readings in the "moderate" category.

The next meeting of environment officials is scheduled for Aug. 2 in Brunei.