Some have tried to make light of the situation, including wedding couples in Singapore who have commissioned haze-themed photo shoots against famous backdrops. Scientists predict the haze this year is on track to surpass 1997 levels when pollution soared to record highs in an environmental disaster that cost an estimated $9 billion in health costs and lost revenue. According to the Indonesian National Institute of Aeronautics and Space, a total of 1,687 fires are burning in Sumatra, a giant island that runs parallel to the western coastline of Malaysia and surrounds Singapore, and in Kalimantan, a province on Borneo island, which is also occupied by Malaysia's Sarawak and Sabah states. Big corporations set fire to forests every year to clear land speedily so the peaty soil can be planted with rows upon rows of trees that will be eventually harvested for paper pulp and palm oil. "For them, burning the forest is the fastest, cheapest and most profitable method instead of clearing with heavy equipment," said Raffles Brotestes Panjaitan, the director of forest fire control in Indonesia's Ministry of Environment and Forestry. The government has also deployed some 22,146 soldiers, policemen and fire personnel in six provinces to fight the fires, with aircraft conducting water-bombing and cloud-seeding operations. In September 2014, Indonesia ratified a regional agreement under which it promised to take steps to ease the problem through its own efforts and with international cooperation, or be held liable for the impact of haze on its neighbors. In Malaysia, a deputy minister suggested the government should seek compensation from Indonesia for financial losses, saying Malaysian street vendors saw their businesses plummet 30 percent in a month.
Neighbors Turn Up The Heat On Indonesia Over Forest Fires
By ANNABELLE LIANG and VIJAY JOSHI, Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle: World
Tue, 10/06/2015 - 2:28am
Topics: scientists indonesian national institute aeronautics space sumatra kalimantan borneo malaysia's sarawak sabah big raffles brotestes panjaitan indonesia's ministry environment forestry in september in malaysia malaysian singapore indonesia malaysia neighbors fires burning rows haze government island year
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