{"id":2354,"date":"2014-04-07T17:18:53","date_gmt":"2014-04-07T09:18:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/master.k8s.p4.greenpeace.org\/southeastasia\/?p=2354"},"modified":"2024-05-28T14:14:52","modified_gmt":"2024-05-28T07:14:52","slug":"help-stop-the-haze","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/southeastasia\/story\/2354\/help-stop-the-haze\/","title":{"rendered":"Help Stop The Haze"},"content":{"rendered":"

Forest and peat fires are emerging as a global threat and are driving a public health emergency in Southeast Asia. Indonesia is the front line. And it’s here where much of the smoke, known as the Haze Wave, originates.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Indonesia’s peat stores a massive amount of carbon \u2013 up to 60 billion tonnes, which makes it a virtual carbon bomb if even some of it was released into the air. And that’s not to mention the untold amounts of air pollution to metropolises across the region, including Singapore.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over 75% of fire hotspots in Indonesia occur on peatland: partially decayed, dead vegetation which has accumulated over thousands of years and is typically saturated with water \u2013 it is virtually impossible to set alight in its natural state. But when they are cleared and drained to make way for plantations like palm oil and pulp and paper, this carbon-rich material becomes tinder dry \u2013 and vulnerable to fires.<\/p>\n

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It’s affecting YOU.<\/h4>\n

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The Haze Wave has an insidious affect on the health of the millions living in Sumatra and the region. Modeling attributes an average of 110,000 deaths a year in the region to these fires, primarily associated with long-term seasonal exposure to smoke particles (Johnston et al., 2012). This rises to nearly 300,000 deaths during an El Ni\u00f1o year, when droughts are longer and more severe (Johnston et al., 2012). The fires also pump planet-warming carbon into the air – Indonesia’s peatland conain a whopping 60 billions tonnes of carbon. Releasing all of this carbon would be catastrophic for us all.<\/p>\n

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The Haze: Ground Zero<\/h4>\n

Some of the hardest hit by the peat fires are communities in Sumatra. Greenpeace has helped tell the story of families whose livelihoods have been impacted by the fires.<\/p>\n