No open burning permits to estates if haze worsens

KUCHING, Mon: The Sarawak government will stop issuing permits for open burning to plantation companies if the haze situation worsens, Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr George Chan said today.

He said the Natural Resources and Environment Board, closely monitoring the haze situation, issued 26 permits this month but only eight estates have actively conducted open burnings but they were confined to 50 hectares. “We will issue more permits only if these plantations do not pose any danger of contributing to the haze.

“The permits will be frozen if hotspots are detected or the Air Pollutant Index (API) reading breaches the very unhealthy mark of 200,” said Dr Chan, who is also State Disaster and Relief Management Committee chairman. He said the State Fire and Rescue Department has been told to be on standby, particularly in peat soil areas like in Tudan, Miri division. Peat soil areas are prone to widespread fires during the dry spell.