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Tag: haze

  • NTUC FairPrice Removes Asia Pulp & Paper Group Products

    NTUC FairPrice Removes Asia Pulp & Paper Group Products

    Supermarket chain NTUC FairPrice announced on Wednesday (Oct 7) that it will withdraw all paper products sourced from Asia Pulp & Paper Group (APP), after the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) said it has instituted a temporary restriction on the use of the “Singapore Green Label” certification for the Indonesian firm’s products.

    In a press release, FairPrice said it carries 14 Housebrand products that are certified with the Singapore Green Label. Among them, two are Housebrand tissue products sourced from APP through a licensed distributor. In addition, all 16 APP-related products from various brands carried by the chain also have the Singapore Green Label certification, FairPrice said.

    Products affected by the withdrawal include FairPrice Softpack Tissue 200s, and FairPrice Gold 3 Ply Facial Tissue 140s, supplied by APP. FairPrice will also withdraw all APP-related products, including those from Paseo, NICE and Jolly, by 5pm on Wednesday, it said.

    NTUC FairPrice CEO Seah Kian Peng said: “We have been proactively monitoring the situation over the past week. We initiated meetings with the various parties concerned when the list of firms including APP, was named by the authorities as suspects for contributing to the haze.”

    “As a fair business partner, we reserved taking action pending further information and investigation by the authorities. Our decision to withdraw all APP products is a result of the temporary restriction of their Green Label certification,” he added.

    “NO SUPPLIER HAS BEEN PROVEN TO BE INVOLVED”: APP

    APP has said it has “nothing to hide” and “no supplier has been proven to be involved” in raging forest fires in Indonesia contributing to hazy conditions around the region.

    In a statement issued to the media on Wednesday (Oct 7), APP – which is a member of Indonesia’s Sinar Mas Group and has an office in Singapore – said it received a notice from Singapore’s National Environment Agency (NEA) on Sep 25 and had responded in accordance to their deadline.

    NEA had issued the notice under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, seeking information on its subsidiaries in Singapore and Indonesia, as well as measures taken by its suppliers in Indonesia to put out fires in their concessions, as smoke from raging forest fires in Indonesia’s Sumatra and Kalimantan had pushed air quality to unhealthy levels in Singapore.

    APP added that it has invited NEA officials to visit its operations in Indonesia to demonstrate the company’s no burning policy.

    “If a supplier were found to have been involved in setting forest fires, our policy is clear and we would disengage that supplier. Thus far no supplier has been proven to be involved. It is premature therefore to make judgments until investigations by relevant authorities are completed,” the statement said.

    In the statement, APP said its list of pulpwood suppliers is public, and the company submits concession maps to the Indonesian government and World Resources Institute (WRI).

    “We continue to implement our Forest Conservation Policy (FCP) round the clock, as well as deploying 2,900 trained firefighters and fire suppression helicopters to help deal with this tragic situation,” APP said in the statement, adding that there are fires within their suppliers’ concessions, but not started by the company or its suppliers.

    “The fire situation is complex and both the Singapore and Indonesia governments and authorities are still investigating the situation.”

    APP products include Enlivo notebooks, Inspira paper and Paseo tissue paper.

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

  • Singaporean Helps Fight Indonesian Fires With Solutions

    Singaporean Helps Fight Indonesian Fires With Solutions

    Many Singaporeans have taken to donning masks or staying indoors as the Pollutant Standards Index climbs to unhealthy levels.

    But not Mr Judah Jay, 60.

    Instead, he headed straight for the forest fires in Jambi, a province in Sumatra, to help firefighters put out the blaze that has been causing the haze.

    The Singaporean owner of a company that manufacturers eco-friendly fire extinguishers also donated about 1,000 litres of a special fire-fighting solution to the Indonesian firefighters.

    When asked why he chose to help Indonesia fight the fires for free, Mr Jay said he felt a sense of responsibility.

    “It’s like I am a doctor and I see someone getting hit by a car. I won’t ask if he can pay me, I would help him immediately.

    “In the same way, I have all this knowledge and resources, and it is my duty to help people who need it.”

    The managing director of Fire Terminator International (FTI) and his team arrived in Indonesia three months ago to market a product called JN1010, a fire-fighting solution that not only extinguishes blazes, but also rapidly cools surfaces, removes oxygen, and stops combustible gases from igniting so that the fire does not start again.

    Plans to meet potential clients were cut short two months in, after Mr Jay realised the severity of the haze and forest fires. 
He then shifted his focus to helping the Indonesians deal with the fires, instead.

    He said: “I knew that this was beyond earning money. People there needed help, and I had the means to help them.”

    For four weeks, he donned fire-fighting gear and battled the fires shoulder-to-shoulder with others in Jambi, working day and night to extinguish the blaze.

    Recounting his time there, Mr Jay said: “The heat from the fires was intense. Visibility was so bad that I could not see who was beside me. It was terrible.”

    Although he shipped 1,000 litres of JN1010 for the fire fighting efforts, it took less than a month to use it up.

    “Even though the firefighters were so busy and tired, they gave their all and kept on fighting, so I gave them what I could too,” Mr Jay said.

    MEDIA ATTENTION

    His efforts caught the attention of Indonesian media, with TV network TVRI interviewing Mr Jay and showing him putting out fires during a news clip.

    He returned to Singapore about a week ago to attend the Fire and Disaster Asia 2015 exhibition, which was held at the Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre.

    When The New Paper spoke to Mr Jay at the exhibition last Thursday, he said that he was raring to return to Indonesia to help again.

    “We only brought 10 per cent of our 
supply that time. When I go back in three or four days, I am prepared to bring the remaining 9,000 litres to help fight the fires,” he said.

    Mr Jay added that he would be heading to Kalimantan, in Borneo, this time, and would stay there for as long as he could.

    His wife, Mrs Davina Jay, who is the director for FTI, will stay in Singapore to look after the business while her husband is in Indonesia.

    She said: “I have confidence that he will exercise due caution there.

    “He has been blessed with wisdom and know-how to help minimise human suffering. It must be shared for a good cause”.

    10 firms declare no links to those causing fires in Indonesia

    Ten companies which manufacture paper products sold in Singapore have pledged that they do not use raw materials from the five Indonesian firms believed to be responsible for the ongoing forest fires.

    A joint press release by the Singapore Environment Council (SEC) and the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) yesterday said that all 10 firms, which are certified under the Singapore Green Labelling Scheme (SGLS), have signed declarations forms.

    SEC and Case also revealed that they were awaiting declaration forms from seven other third-party manufacturers.

    The list of all the companies which have signed will be updated regularly on both agencies’ websites.

    SEC is also encouraging other paper companies which have not participated in the SGLS to contact it for certification.

    However, certified firms which are found purchasing wood, paper or pulp products from companies suspected to be involved in the haze pollution are bound by the declaration to inform SEC. They will then be removed from the list.

    STRONG SIGNAL

    Meanwhile, Case has issued a reminder urging consumers not to support companies using such products unless they have pledged to be socially responsible.

    “This will send a strong signal to the errant companies that consumers’ goodwill should not be taken for granted and consumers will not support companies which are environmentally irresponsible and/or have contributed to the environmental disaster year after year,” it added.

    Last month, Singapore started legal action against five companies which it believes are among the culprits behind Indonesia’s pollution-causing fires. Four are Indonesian companies which have been told to take measures to extinguish fires on their land, not to start new ones and submit action plans on how they will prevent future fires.

    The fifth one is Singapore-listed firm Asia Pulp and Paper. It has been served a legal notice to supply information on its subsidiaries in Singapore and Indonesia, as well as measures taken by its suppliers in Indonesia to put out fires on their concessions. – The Straits Times.

     

    Source: www.tnp.sg

  • One-Room Flat Residents Badly Hit By Haze

    One-Room Flat Residents Badly Hit By Haze

    With four people cramped in a one-room flat, Mr Thiagarajan’s family need three fans to make sure it didn’t get too stuffy.

    As PSI levels hit the unhealthy range this month, they had to buy two more fans just so they could breathe.

    He was one of several people The New Paper team spoke to who live in one-room rental flats at Mei Ling Street and Casa Clementi.

    “The haze makes it hard to breathe. My family is very irritated because we have had no choice but to close the window. It’s hotter than usual so we have five fans. We bought two more fans to keep cool,” said the 27-year-old staff member at a club.

    Despite five fans, Mr Thiagarajan’s family have been feeling ill.

    “My brother is sick with a throat infection and fever. The doctor told us it’s because of the haze and gave him a three-day Medical Certificate,” said Mr Thiagarajan.

     

    Source: www.tnp.sg

     

  • Jusuf Kalla: Indonesia Open To Help From Any Country, Including Singapore

    Jusuf Kalla: Indonesia Open To Help From Any Country, Including Singapore

    JAKARTA — The Indonesian government is open to help from any country, including Singapore, if they wish to assist in fighting the forest fires that are causing the haze in the region, Indonesian Vice-President Jusuf Kalla said yesterday (Sept 27).

    Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in New York, Mr Kalla said the Indonesian government has noted Singapore’s protests against the haze.

    “Please come, we are open. Singapore can see for itself. Singapore, please come if you want to help. Don’t just talk,” local news agency Antara News quoted Mr Kalla as saying.

    Mr Kalla said Indonesia has explained that it is working hard to put out the forest fires, but it is difficult to solve the problem within a short period of time.

    “The forest fires in Indonesia are helped by the dry weather and winds,” he said.

    This is not the first time Mr Kalla is inviting Singapore to help. On Sept 15, he appealed to Singapore through local media to help fight the fires, and was quoted as saying: “Singapore, please come. Singapore also knows that the natural disaster can happen anywhere.”

    The Singapore Armed Forces had offered to send C-130s for cloud seeding and Chinooks to carry large water buckets to douse the fires.

    However, Indonesia’s Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar has declined Singapore’s assistance, and said that her country is trying to handle the crisis on its own. Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi also said that she has spoken with her Singaporean counterpart to explain the steps that Jakarta has taken.

    “Indonesia is very serious about resolving the fires, and this will be complemented with law enforcement and education,” said Ms Retno.

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Local Voluteer Group Plans To Go After Firms Involved In Causing Haze

    Local Voluteer Group Plans To Go After Firms Involved In Causing Haze

    As the season of haze returns to our shores, some Singaporeans may feel helpless about the smoky, unhealthy air blown our way from the south.

    But a group of volunteers are determined to take up the fight against the haze, or those who had a hand in causing it.

    The Haze Elimination Action Team (Heat), led by Professor Ang Peng Hwa of Nanyang Technological University’s Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, is planning to sue and boycott the companies responsible for the fires.

    Yesterday morning, PSI levels crossed into the hazardous range. At 6am, the 24-hour PSI was 257-318, and the three-hour PSI stood at 334.

    Prof Ang told The New Paper yesterday: “We want consumers to know that there is something that we can do. We are not helpless.”

    He and a few others set up Heat in 2007 – a year after Singapore experienced its worst haze in a decade, with the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) peaking at 150.

    “What struck me most back then was when I read about a 40-year-old CEO who said how Singaporeans can’t do anything about the haze.

    “This was a man empowered and in charge of a company, yet he was feeling helpless. I told myself that surely there was something we can do,” he said.

    In 2007, Heat raised about $20,000 for a website and an educational effort in Jambi, South Sumatra.

    Today, the group has about 800 members who include professionals, housewives and students.

    It is also working with another haze awareness group, PM.Haze.

    Prof Ang said that Heat intends to sue and boycott companies that are registered here but are involved, via intermediary or subsidiary companies, in starting the fires in Indonesia.

    It is also “looking for someone or an organisation that has incurred losses of at least tens of thousand dollars or more due the haze”, or who has been hospitalised, to be an “ideal plaintiff”, he said.

    Legal fees are estimated between $50,000 and $100,000 and the team is looking to get pro bono help as well as a lawyer with experience in corporate forensics to help trace the ownership pattern of the fires, he said.

    Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan said that this was an encouraging effort at self-help by Heat, but added that it would be a challenging task.

    TOUGH TO PROVE

    Firstly, there is the evidential burden of proof that these local companies have management control of the Indonesian companies that are legally responsible for the haze, he said.

    Heat would then need to provide evidence to the court that these Indonesian entities were indeed causing the haze pollution, he said.

    But he noted that this bottom-up approach, if successful, would hit the alleged companies where it hurts the most – their reputations and profits.

    “It will send a signal to these companies to clean up their act. It can pressure Singaporean entities to insist on sustainable and responsible agricultural practices throughout their supply chains.

    “It’s a case of consumers having a big say in how a company ought to conduct itself and being responsible to stakeholders,” he said.

    Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said during a press conference yesterday that the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, which was passed in Parliament last year, will help those seeking legal action against those responsible for causing or condoning fires if burning results in unhealthy levels of haze in Singapore.

    “Whenever possible, we will try to share as much information as possible with the public. I think they are entitled to take action. I think our demands for greater transparency and sharing of information will facilitate their action. Anyone who suffers losses as a result of this may be entitled to take action against errant companies pursuant to (the Act).”

    Dr Balakrishnan also listed five companies that the National Environmental Agency has issued notices to. (See report,)

    Prof Ang said the case could take years to build and is aware of the challenges ahead.

    One of their plans is to gather pictures of the sites that are burning now and check back on these sites in a few years.

    “We hope then to trace who benefited from these fires. To the companies suspected of starting fires, we are coming after you,” he said.

    NEA serves notices on five Indonesian firms

    The National Environmental Agency (NEA) has initiated action against four companies which might be involved in the fires that have resulted in the haze, under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act.

    Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan told reporters yesterday: “It (the haze situation) cannot be tolerated. It has caused a major impact on the health, society and economy of our region.”

    NEA investigations showed that haze-causing fires may have occurred on land concessions held by four Indonesian companies: PT Rimba Hutani Mas, PT Sebangun Bumi Andalas Wood Industries, PT Bumi Sriwijaya Sentosa and PT Wachyuni Mandira.

    Under the Act, NEA asked the companies to carry out measures such as extinguishing or preventing any fires on land owned and occupied by them, discontinuing or not commencing burning activities and submitting to it a plan to extinguish or prevent recurrence of such fires.

    FIREFIGHTING EFFORTS: Indonesian military troops and firefighters sourcing water from a canal to help put out fires on a vast burning peat land forest in Jabiren Raya district in Central Kalimantan province on Borneo island. PHOTO: AFP

    NEA has also served notice to Asia Pulp & Paper Company, an Indonesian company with an office in Singapore, asking for information on its subsidiaries, as well as measures taken by its suppliers in Indonesia to put out fires.

    All five notices were served yesterday.

    NEA has also written to the Indonesian authorities asking for the names of other errant companies which might have been identified as causing the fires.

    Dr Balakrishnan added: ” The Singapore Government is examining ways to apply more economic pressure against errant companies. We will share the results of investigations with public whenever possible.”

    The maximum fine for companies found guilty of starting fires is $100,000 per day, capped at $2 million.

    Q&A To clear the air

    It looks clear outside and there is no smoke smell, but the PSI levels on the National Environmental Agency (NEA) website are above 300. What should I trust?

    The public should not depend on the visibility and smell of the air because there are other contributing factors in the air besides the PM2.5 concentration, said an NEA spokesman.

    Members of public should instead look at the three-hour PSI reading and the one-hour PM2.5 concentration level as a guide to adjust immediate activities like going outside for a jog.

    “Don’t trust your eyes and nose because they are not what detect harmful substances in the air,” said air pollution researcher Erik Velasco of the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology’s Centre for Environmental Sensing and Modelling.

    Is the online site www.aqicn.org reliable?

    On Sept 18, the Beijing-based environmental non-profit group Air Quality Index China released a real-time, interactive map displaying air pollution levels around the world.

    The AQICN map, which automatically updates every 15 minutes, compiles verified data from official environmental protection agencies such as NEA.

    But its values may differ from those on the NEA website because of a difference in the formula that it uses to calculate the PSI.

    Dr Velasco said the NEA website is based on instruments that are approved by international standards and it would be safer to refer to it.

    Which is a better gauge, the PSI or PM2.5 readings?

    The 24-hour PSI forecast reflects the PSI trend. It is also a gauge for an individual’s total exposure to PM2.5 concentrations and should be used to plan ahead for activities, such as whether one should go to work or school. During haze episodes, health advice will be based on the 24-hour PSI.

    The three-hour PSI reading and the one-hour PM2.5 concentration reading are based on more recent PM2.5 readings than the 24-hour PSI forecast. So these readings are better guides as to what one should do at a particular point of the day.

    What is expected of the haze for the new few days?

    The hazy conditions will continue over the next few days, but will gradually improve over the weekend, said NEA.

    Wind patterns are expected to change – coming from the South-east instead of the South-west, where the fires and smoke are, Dr Velasco said.

     

    Source: www.tnp.sg