KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 25 — The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES) is examining mechanisms to draft specific legislation to address transboundary haze, including considering the approach adopted by Singapore.
NRES Environmental Management Division undersecretary Dr G Pubadi said Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup recently directed the establishment of a special committee comprising relevant ministries and agencies to study measures to strengthen efforts to tackle the haze.
“The ministry is examining the mechanisms already in place in Singapore with a view to drafting specific legislation to address the haze issue. However, drafting an act is not a simple matter,” he said during the Bernama TV programme Ruang Bicara, titled ‘Regional Action and Cooperation to Address Transboundary Haze’, last night.
Pubadi said Malaysia had also presented a paper on Science Diplomacy and a Sustainable Haze Fund at the recent 27th Technical Working Group (TWG) meeting and Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) meeting in Bali, Indonesia.
He said the proposal received support from the five countries attending the meeting — Indonesia, Brunei, Singapore, Thailand and Timor-Leste.
According to Pubadi, the matter will be reviewed by the ASEAN Secretariat before being brought to a meeting involving 11 countries in Vietnam this December.
Malaysia has also proposed more open sharing of haze-related data.
“Regarding this data, if implemented, all countries should be able to share it openly and transparently. This would assist all nations in taking appropriate follow-up action to address the haze issue or open burning,” he said.
Pubadi said Malaysia also viewed financial sustainability as crucial to strengthening ASEAN mechanisms and ensuring the region has sufficient resources, including equipment and other necessities, to tackle fires and transboundary haze.
Meanwhile, Department of Environment (DOE) enforcement director Rosli Zul said the department operates 68 air quality monitoring stations as the country’s official monitoring system.
He advised the public to refer to the department’s readings to avoid confusion with other platforms that use different measurement methods.
Rosli said enforcement against open burning, a major contributor to haze, continued to be intensified, noting that nearly 80 per cent of complaints received by the DOE annually were related to such activities.
On the current haze situation, he said the transition to the Northeast Monsoon, expected around mid-October, could potentially reduce the impact of transboundary haze as wind patterns shift, even if fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan have yet to cease.
He said monitoring would therefore be stepped up to ensure domestic fires do not become a source of haze after mid-October, with measures including collaboration on weather forecasting and the use of satellite
