Measures Taken to Minimise Impact of Recent Indonesian Forest Fires

Ms Joan Pereira asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources in view of the recent Indonesian forest fires, what measures are being taken to minimise the impact on Singapore and what is the update on the cooperative actions with neighbouring countries under the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution (AATHP).

The Government adopts a multi-pronged approach to reduce the risk and impact of transboundary haze on Singapore. In Singapore, the National Environment Agency (NEA) continuously monitors the ambient air quality and has been issuing daily advisories to the public on the haze situation since 4 August this year. NEA also chairs an inter-agency Haze Task Force to monitor the haze situation closely during dry seasons and to implement action plans to mitigate the effects of haze should Singapore be affected.

Within the region, Singapore works closely with other ASEAN member states to monitor hotspot activities and undertake measures to reduce forest fires. The ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC), which Singapore hosts, shares meteorological and hotspots forecasts with ASEAN member states. ASMC has also set aside $5 million over the next five years to help ASEAN member states. In addition, the lack of haze in Singapore over the last two years is in no small part due to Indonesia's extensive and continuous efforts to minimise the number of hotspots within the country.

Nevertheless, we have been observing persistent hotspot activities in the surrounding region in the past few weeks. Singapore is currently in the Southwest Monsoon season and the NEA is forecasting drier conditions in the coming weeks. These conditions can lead to an escalation of hotspot activities and an increased risk of transboundary haze in Singapore and the surrounding region.

At the recent 21st meeting of the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution in Brunei on 6 August, Singapore and other member countries (Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand) noted the report by the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre about the potential escalation of hotspot activities in fire-prone areas and increased risk of transboundary haze due to drier and warmer weather. These countries also noted that transboundary haze pollution remains a major concern for the region, and reaffirmed their readiness to enhance cooperation and coordination to address land and forest fires. Singapore has offered technical firefighting assistance to Indonesia and is ready to deploy them, as we did so in 2015, if requested by Indonesia.

At the same meeting, MSC member countries also reaffirmed our commitment to the objectives and principles of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution and the Roadmap on ASEAN Cooperation towards Transboundary Haze Pollution Control with Means of Implementation. The Roadmap serves as a strategic framework to implement collaborative actions to achieve a vision of "Transboundary Haze-Free ASEAN by 2020". In October 2019, Singapore will be meeting other ASEAN Member States in Cambodia to take stock of the implementation of the Agreement.