Singapore, October 18: Haze from fires in Indonesia pushed the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) in western Singapore to 230 at 10am on Sunday, the highest reading of the season and well inside the “very unhealthy” range, Malay Mail reported. The rest of the island was in the “unhealthy” range, between 130 and 187. It was the 14th consecutive day of unhealthy air since October 5, matching the 14 consecutive days recorded during the 2015 haze, Malay Mail noted.
On Friday, Sustainability and Environment Minister Grace Fu said Singapore will serve legal notices on seven Indonesian companies whose land it links to the fires, and warned that air quality could reach hazardous levels. The ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) has activated Alert Level 3, the highest on its scale, for the southern ASEAN region, and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has approved accepting foreign help to fight what Reuters described as the country’s worst forest fires in more than a decade.
Key highlights
- Sunday 10am: 24-hour PSI of 230 in the west, a season high; 130 to 187 elsewhere.
- Friday 7pm: central 225, west 202, east 201, south 183, north 161, with three regions above 200.
- Sunday was the 14th straight day of unhealthy air, matching the 14-day run of the 2015 haze (September 23 to October 7, 2015).
- Singapore will issue preventive measure notices to seven Indonesian companies under its Transboundary Haze Pollution Act.
- Indonesia detected 799 high-confidence hotspots on Thursday night, up 427 in a day; four people died fighting a fire in East Java.
How bad the air has been
| Region | 24-hour PSI, Fri Oct 16, 7pm | 24-hour PSI, Sun Oct 18, 10am |
|---|---|---|
| West | 202 | 230 (season high) |
| Central | 225 | Within 130–187 |
| East | 201 | Within 130–187 |
| South | 183 | Within 130–187 |
| North | 161 | Within 130–187 |
PSI bands: 101–200 is “unhealthy”, 201–300 “very unhealthy” and above 300 “hazardous”. Hourly PM2.5 readings at 10am on Sunday were 139 micrograms per cubic metre in the west, 117 in the central region, 82 in the south, 72 in the north and 71 in the east, Malay Mail reported. The year’s highest hourly reading was 288 in the west at 3pm on October 14.
Our calculation: Sunday’s 230 in the west was 30 points into the very unhealthy band, and 28 points higher than the west’s own reading on Friday evening (230 − 202). Counting from October 5, Singapore has now had two full weeks of unhealthy air. Across the border, Indonesia’s hotspot count jumped from 372 to 799 in a single day on Thursday (799 − 427 = 372), an increase of about 115%.
Seven Indonesian companies on notice
“Our investigation so far suggested that some of the haze experienced in Singapore originated from fires” on land belonging to seven Indonesian companies, Fu told a press conference on Friday, according to Bernama. The National Environment Agency (NEA) will issue preventive measure notices under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, which lets Singapore act against companies whose fires abroad pollute its air. The notices require the companies to deploy firefighters to put out fires on land they own or occupy and stop them spreading, to stop or not start any burning, and to submit action plans to the NEA. The companies were not named.
“Where warranted, we will take further action under the THPA based on the information and evidence available,” Fu said, Malay Mail reported.
ASEAN’s top alert, and Indonesia’s fires
ASMC, based near Singapore’s Changi Airport, activates Alert Level 3 when persistent hotspots and widespread moderate to dense smoke haze last two or more days amid dry weather and winds blowing the haze towards neighbours. It is the third such alert this year, after March 27 and August 26, Malay Mail reported.
In Indonesia, satellites detected 799 high-confidence hotspots nationwide on Thursday night, up 427 from the day before, the Forestry Ministry said, adding that a single blaze can register as several hotspots. Four people fighting a wildfire in Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java were killed when they were caught in the flames, and two others were seriously burned, Al Jazeera reported. The worst fires are in Sumatra and Borneo.
Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Nasir said Prabowo had approved accepting assistance from neighbouring countries. Malaysia offered three helicopters, an aircraft and 52 personnel last month, and Singapore has said it is ready to help, Reuters reported. Earlier this week, we reported that hotspots had more than doubled in Indonesia’s priority provinces while Malaysia kept schools shut: Indonesia’s fire hotspots more than double.
Masks and health advice
Singapore is distributing N95 masks to vulnerable residents through 37 vending machines across the island, and Fu said there are enough masks in retailers’ warehouses and government stockpiles. When hourly PM2.5 is in the high band, healthy people should avoid strenuous outdoor activity and vulnerable people should avoid outdoor activity altogether, the NEA advises, according to AsiaOne. Residents are urged to check hourly PM2.5 readings before going out, because a 24-hour PSI can hide a sudden worsening.
What to watch
- Showers forecast for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, with winds turning south-southeast or south, which may cut smoke from Kalimantan, though smoke from Sumatra may still arrive (NEA forecast via Malay Mail).
- Whether the PSI crosses 300, the hazardous level Fu warned about.
- A 15th straight day of unhealthy air on Monday would make this run longer than the 14-day spell of 2015.
- How quickly foreign firefighting help reaches Indonesia, and whether Singapore names the seven companies.
What it means
The haze is now a regional crisis with legal and diplomatic edges: Singapore is using its cross-border law against Indonesian companies, and Jakarta has opened the door to outside help. Fu expects improvement only as the inter-monsoon arrives in late October or early November, and the haze to stop reaching Singapore around early December with the northeast monsoon, so Singapore, Malaysia and their neighbours face more weeks of bad air.
Sources
- Malay Mail: Singapore’s west records season-high PSI of 230 as haze enters 14th day
- Bernama: Singapore to issue preventive measure notices to seven Indonesian firms linked to haze
- Malay Mail: Singapore targets seven Indonesian firms as haze worsens, air quality turns very unhealthy
- Malay Mail: Indonesia fires trigger highest-level regional haze alert
- AsiaOne: Haze update Oct 17: PSI drops to unhealthy range, PM2.5 elevated
- Al Jazeera: Four killed as Indonesia battles worst forest fires in more than a decade
- The Star (Reuters): Indonesia’s president ready to accept foreign assistance to combat fires
The International Desk covers world and Asian affairs, diplomacy and conflict, with a focus on what they mean for India. Stories are checked against at least two credible sources before publication.
