Asia-Pacific, Climate Change, Development & Aid, Environment, Headlines

SOUTH-EAST ASIA: Big Bucks Behind Forest Blaze, Haze

Baradan Kuppusamy

KUALA LUMPUR, Jul 12 2007 (IPS) - The annual phenomenon that is oddly called the ‘haze’ is back and beginning to blanket parts of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei in thick, acrid smoke from the forest fires in Indonesia, mainly from the Kalimantan and Sumatra islands.

Experts say the fact that the ‘haze’ has returned indicates that all the promises and plans announced by the ten-nation Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN) last year to prevent forest fires and end the annual return of the haze have failed.

"All the urgings, meetings, memoranda and regional plans between the (ASEAN) countries to combat trans-boundary pollution have failed," said S. M. Mohamed Idris, president of Friends of Earth, Malaysia.

"They have been unable to prevent the fires and are unable to put it out," he told IPS. "The political will is badly missing."

One of the latest plans announced after last year’s debilitating haze was for Malaysia and Singapore, two victims, to adopt a fire-prone province in Indonesia to help local authorities prevent fires and if lighted, to fight the fires.

The two countries held numerous meetings and drew up draft plans with local authorities in Jambi (adopted by Singapore) and Riau, under Malaysia’s care. ASEAN also includes Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Burma, Laos, Brunei and the Philippines.

The measures include raising awareness about fire prevention, providing alternative livelihoods for slash-and-burn farmers, and promoting responsible farming and peat land management practices.

Experts had however predicted that the plan will not work because both countries have powerful commercial interests to turn Indonesian forests into plantations for oil palm which currently enjoys a historically all-time high of 700 US dollars a tonne.

Firing the forests during the dry season from June to August is the tested and cheapest way to clear land for oil palm.

Once the land is cleared and its biodiversity destroyed, oil palm is planted extensively turning the entire landscape into a monoculture jungle.

"Besides high prices, the bio-fuel craze is also fuelling the opening up of more land for oil palm plantation," Idris told IPS.

Cash-flush plantation companies – both Malaysian and Indonesian – have marked out vast tracts of forest and peat land in Sumatra and Kalimantan for new palm plantations.

The peat land in Sumatra and Riau is the main target because it burns fast and is ideal for oil palm.

The statistics tell it all. Indonesia is targeted to produce 17.4 million tonnes of crude palm oil (CPO) this year for the first time, outstripping Malaysia as the world’s number one producer. Malaysia, which is expected to take second place with 16.5 million tonnes, is a major developer of Indonesian oil palm.

Malaysian companies, in joint ventures with Indonesian partners, owned 1.3 million hectares of oil palm plantation in 1999, from a mere 6,000 hectares in 1967.

A leading industry expert estimates another three million hectares would come under palm oil in Indonesia by 2020, effectively wiping out the last of the great rainforest.

"Sumatra alone will account for most of the expansion with 1.6 million new hectares under oil palm," he told IPS.

"Kalimantan will take up another one million hectares and West Papua 400,000 hectares," said the expert, who declined to be named, citing development plans already approved by Indonesia.

Malaysian companies will play a major role in the opening up of new plantation land in Indonesia given Malaysian expertise and Indonesia’s favourable climate and low labour costs.

The return of the haze has brought out the familiar blame game with Indonesian officials blaming Malaysian and Singaporean companies for firing the Indonesian forest.

For example, Indonesian Consul-General in Malaysia Moeni Soenanda told Malaysian reporters this month that "checks" revealed that "none of the companies" involved in open burning were Indonesian.

"The companies involved in illegal logging and open burning are all foreign," he said without naming any company.

This is exactly the same script that Indonesia has been giving out every year for the past 20 years.

"It’s always like this when the haze season arrives – Indonesian officials would blame foreign companies for causing the haze," said Syed Nadzri, chief editor of the semi-official ‘New Straits Times’ daily in a commentary on Jul. 9.

"Malaysia will deny and amid all the hot air, the forests continue to burn and the smoke is blown across the border to the neighbours," the commentary said.

The newspaper demanded Indonesia take firm action against any and all culprits – ‘’Malaysians, Indonesians, Singaporeans or even Martians.’’

Countries in the region have been pressing Indonesia to ratify the ASEAN agreement on trans-boundary haze pollution which is being touted as the answer to the annual haze from forest fires.

The pact, which came into force at end 2003, among other matters, requires signatories to take legal, administrative and other measures to prevent forest fires and put it out once lighted.

It contains provisions on monitoring as well as simplified customs and immigration procedures for disaster relief.

Parties are also required to cooperate in developing and implementing measures to prevent and monitor trans-boundary haze pollution, and control sources of fires by developing early warning systems and providing mutual assistance.

The agreement also requires the parties concerned to respond promptly to a request for relevant information sought by a state or states affected by such haze pollution.

With public anger rising over this year’s haze, Indonesia quickly assured its neighbours that it is taking "all necessary steps" to ratify the agreement.

Unfortunately, Indonesia also said the same during the 2005 and 2006 haze season.

Environmental experts say even if Indonesia ratifies the agreement it will still be unable to completely eradicate forest fires given the limits of the country’s administrative, technical and financial resources and its huge size.

An example of the challenges Indonesia faces is the decision this month by the local authority in Riau, the most fire prone province, to "legally" allow farmers to burn up to two hectares of land this year for slash-and-burn agriculture.

The local rule flagrantly violates the national environmental law which makes open burning illegal and undermines the national pledge to prevent the fires.

Indonesian environmentalists predict that as a result of this ruling the fires this year, and consequently the haze, could be on a larger scale than before.

In addition, a ‘strange clause’ in Indonesia’s forestry law allows open burning of forests if ‘permits’ are obtained, and according to Indonesian NGOs such permits are easily obtained.

In the end it all boils down to huge profits – first from logging, then from oil palm whose amazing productivity surpasses all vegetable oils.

For the giant plantation companies and their political backers, a spot of haze each year is a small price to pay.