Singapore - Environment authorities from Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore met yesterday to discuss plans to reduce and mitigate hazy conditions as dry weather is expected soon.
The meeting, the fifth installment of the Sub-regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution, took place in Singapore.
According to the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre, the strengthening of the Southwest Monsoon and dissipation of the La Nina phenomenon will bring about drier weather in the next three months compared to the same period last year.
As a result, more hotspots are predicted, particularly in the fire-prone areas of Sumatra and Borneo. Given the situation, the fifth MSC saw the authorities agreeing to continue vigilance of hotspot-prone areas and to act proactively to curb the occurrence of land and forest fires.
The meeting also heard updates on Indonesia‘s ongoing efforts to reduce by half the occurrence of hotspots as compared to 2006.
Brunei Darussalam was represented at the meeting by Development Minister Pehin Orang Kaya Hamzah Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Hj Abdullah Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Hj Bakar, along with the director and top officials from the Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation.
Brunei‘s policies on haze include daily monitoring of air quality through stations throughout the country, and regular updates on local and regional meteorological conditions and hotspot counts.
Air quality is disseminated to the public through the media, with appropriate advisories issued when air quality reaches worrying levels.
Other policies include prohibiting open burning during dry weather. By Khairunnisa Ibrahim
Source: http://www.brudirect.com (June 24, 2008)