Toxic haze chokes lungs

Editor's note: In this weekly feature China Daily gives voice to Asia and its people. The stories presented come mainly from the Asia News Network (ANN), of which China Daily is among its 20 leading titles.

Thick haze from spreading wildfires has blanketed large swaths of Indonesia, sending respiratory cases soaring, disrupting daily life and forcing schools to close as worsening air quality raises health concerns for millions.

Wildfires burned about 200,000 hectares of land from January to July, Indonesian forestry ministry data showed, increasing from 107,465 burned hectares from January to June.

Efforts to reduce wildfires ablaze across Indonesia will be challenging as the El Nino weather phenomenon will peak this month, said Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni.

The haze caused more than 50,000 cases of acute respiratory infection across seven provinces between July and August, Indonesian health ministry official Andi Saguni said on Sept 1.

Winds blow haze to surrounding provinces and cause infections in places without wildfires, Andi said.

Indonesia has intensified efforts to contain haze from forest and land fires across six provinces on Kalimantan and Sumatra islands.

The authorities have used weather modification to trigger rain and have "water-bombed" areas to contain the hot spots and mitigate the fires, Raja Juli said.

Hot spots were reduced across Kalimantan and Sumatra by the end of August, the forestry minister said.

However, the "super-El Nino" weather conditions exacerbate the fires, causing drought. "Our problems are not over. September is the peak of El Nino," he said. "September is the main fight for us."

As for the reason, Raja Juli said the fires were in large part deliberately set, either by individuals or corporations. Despite crackdowns, burning forests to clear land for agriculture and other economic activities has been a common practice in Indonesia. Kalimantan has vast stretches of peatland where fire can smoulder underground for weeks.

Six forestry permit holders have been fined and the ministry has said a criminal probe was possible.

Satellite imaging has revealed that 42 companies hold concessions with high wildfire potential, Indonesian environment ministry's senior official Rizal Irawan said.

Crossing borders

The haze has also crossed into neighboring ASEAN countries forcing thousands of schools to move classes online, including in neighboring Malaysia.

According to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite imagery analyzed by the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre, or ASMC, in Singapore, 1,211 hot spots were detected across the southern ASEAN region on Aug 29.

Malaysian Environment Department Deputy Director-General (Development) Azuri Azizah Saedon said the Regional Haze Map issued by ASMC showed dry conditions prevailing across most of the southern ASEAN region, except for some areas, particularly northern Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia, which received rainfall.

Transboundary haze may also persist in parts of the Philippines as the prevailing southwest monsoon or "habagat" causes smoke to reach several regions in Luzon and the Visayas, environment and health officials of the Philippines said on Sept 1.

Several places in Metro Manila recorded "very unhealthy" to "acutely unhealthy" air quality levels on Sept 1, according to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources of the Philippines.