Tag Archives: Sumatra

Indonesia’s forest fires feed ‘brown cloud’ of pollution choking Asia’s cities

High above the vast Indonesian island of Sumatra, satellites identify hundreds of plumes of smoke drifting over the oil palm plantations and rainforests. They look harmless as the monsoon winds sweep them north and east towards Singapore, Malaysia and deep … Continue reading

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Haze this year ‘could be worse’ than last year’s record haze

If you thought last June’s record haze was bad, be prepared for it to get even worse this year. The Government is bracing itself against such a scenario, with a triple whammy of factors suggesting that Singapore may see pollutant … Continue reading

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Riau Forest Fire Triggers Worst Indonesia Haze Pollution

Forest fires in western Indonesia have intensified this month affecting the residents of Riau, West Sumatra and North Sumatra. The forest burning is also blamed for producing a thick haze to descend on neighboring Singapore and Malaysia. Fire hotspots have … Continue reading

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Going Up in Smoke: Why You Should Care About Indonesia’s Fires

Sumatra’s forests are on fire again, less than a year after blazes burned large areas and covered Singapore and parts of Malaysia in thick smoke. While the fires in Indonesia might seem far away for many people, they are everyone’s … Continue reading

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Kuala Lumpur chokes on polluted air

The haze around the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur reached unhealthy levels on Tuesday as forest fires worsened in Indonesia’s Sumatra, a month after haze from fires on the island blanketed parts of Malaysia and Singapore. The air pollution index (API) … Continue reading

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Haze may return in coming days: NEA

Singapore’s National Environment Agency said hazy conditions may return to Singapore in the coming days. That may happen if dry weather persists in most parts of Sumatra and wind direction changes to blow from the west in the next two … Continue reading

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South-East Asia’s smog: Unspontaneous combustion

SINCE the mid-1980s, when Indonesia first began to clear its bountiful forests on an industrial scale in favour of lucrative palm-oil plantations, “haze” has become an almost annual occurrence in South-East Asia. The cheapest way to clear logged woodland is … Continue reading

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Malaysia declares state of emergency in Muar and Ledang

Malaysia’s government on Sunday declared a state of emergency in two southern districts choked by smog from forest fires in Indonesia as air pollution levels reached 16-year-highs. Environment minister G. Palanivel said the air pollutant index (API) hit 750 – … Continue reading

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