Every year the burning of peatlands and forest in Indonesia’s Sumatra and Kalimantan provinces has an effect felt across much of South East Asia. Local farmers and internationally-owned plantations alike employ the slash and burn method to clear vast areas of land, readying it for agricultural use - most commonly for the production palm oil. The smoke of these fires has a transboundary impact, permeating borders and holding other South East Asian communities as a hostage of haze.
So what does haze feel like in Singapore? It isn’t like the air pollution those of us in big cities are most familiar with. It doesn’t smell like car exhaust fumes, or the product of chemical industry. The haze is smoke, generated by the burning of dense organic matter. Sometimes it is hardly noticeable, other times I am painfully aware that I am breathing in thick, heavy particles that aggravate my throat, eyes and lungs. It is not healthy. I don’t like that the air inside feels cleaner than the air outside. I don’t like that I change plans and stay indoors to accommodate painful, ugly and preventable pollution.
Of course, the relatively minor health and lifestyle implications that the haze inflicts on me are insignificant when I consider what the conditions must like be for those living in locations where the haze is at its most intense, particularly those closest to the source, who not only suffer terrible health issues but might also find themselves displaced, losing their homes and land. And then there is the devastating loss of forestation, the injurious effect on wildlife, the destabilization of fragile and vital ecosystems, and the huge amounts of carbon being released into the atmosphere to consider. Every time I see the haze closing in on the skyline of Singapore, I am horribly aware that it has originated from a site of environmental degradation.
Like most public health and environmental challenges the solution is not immediately apparent, is complicated and depends largely on political will. But those of us who want to help initiate change must encourage awareness, honest discussion and debate, and push for positive action from South East Asia’s leaders. I don’t want to be just another person complaining about the haze to my friends. I want to add my voice to the campaign to regulate farming practices and ask that corporate owners of large plantations are held to account, particularly in regards to the sustainability of palm oil production. And that is why I have joined Greenpeace’s movement to #stopthehaze and also why I would encourage others to do the same.
Blog contrubuted by a Greenpeace Supporter in Singapore : A.Howell