Impact of Transboundary Haze Pollution Act on Air Quality

39 Mr Ong Teng Koon asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) to what extent the improvement in air quality this year can be attributed to the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act; and (b) how can it be ensured that the problem does not resurface in future years.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: There have been more occurrences of rain in the region, in particular, over Sumatra and Kalimantan, during the traditional dry season from June to October this year as compared to the same period in 2015. The wetter weather has helped to alleviate the hotspots and smoke haze situation in the region. We also appreciate the Indonesians' efforts to prevent and mitigate the forest fires on the ground. Air quality in 2016 has, therefore, been better than that in 2015. In 2016, we have so far only recorded four "Unhealthy" days. In comparison, there were 40 "Unhealthy" days, five "Very Unhealthy" days and one "Hazardous" day in 2015.

Nevertheless, we need to be mindful that transboundary haze has been a persistent problem in our region, and we cannot prematurely conclude that it is behind us because of one good year. The international community has become increasingly aware that eradicating haze in our region is crucial to the global fight against climate change. The 2015 haze episode in our region was found to occur mostly on degraded peatlands, which are major carbon sinks. According to a recent scientific study conducted by scientists from the Netherlands, Britain and Indonesia, the 2015 fires in Indonesia had generated 850 million tonnes of greenhouse gases. This is more than half of the 1.5 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide that was saved from the increased use of renewable energy by the whole world in 2015.

Fundamentally, the main cause of transboundary haze in our region remains commercially driven. This means that there must be continual efforts to get companies in the pulp and paper and the palm oil industries to adopt environmentally sustainable practices that do not contribute to smoke haze.

One key measure is the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act (THPA) which seeks to hold haze-causing companies accountable and deter entities from engaging in activities that would contribute to haze in Singapore. The National Environment Agency has sent a number of Notices under the THPA and investigations are still on-going. We will take the necessary steps to enforce the THPA, while bearing in mind that we also have to operate within the ambit of international law. We will hold any Singapore-linked persons or entities to account. At the same time, even if the errant company's officers are foreigners, they will have to comply with the laws of the country, including the Notices under the THPA, should they come to Singapore. As the THPA has only been in force for a short time, we cannot draw any conclusions on its effectiveness, as this will only be apparent over the longer term.

Apart from regulatory deterrence, it is also important for consumers at various levels of the supply chain, in Singapore and our region, to send a strong signal against practices that contribute to the haze. Recently, NTUC FairPrice shared that their FairPrice house brand edible oils that contain palm oil are from sources certified by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). This is indeed commendable. In addition, ground-up initiatives by non-governmental organisations can also complement this. For example, the formation of the Singapore Alliance on Sustainable Palm Oil in June this year has helped to raise public awareness on the use of Certified Sustainable Palm Oil.

This builds upon what has been happening globally. In April 2016, consumer groups including Nestle, Unilever, Mars and Kellogg, suspended business with Industrial Oxygen Incorporated (IOI) Group after a decision by the RSPO to suspend certification for the company's palm oil. This suspension was due to IOI’s failure to prevent its subsidiaries' involvement in deforestation in Indonesia in 2015. Even with the RSPO restoring IOI's certification in August 2016, consumer groups, such as Unilever, had indicated that they do not intend to resume business with IOI Group until they see tangible progress in IOI's declared remedial action plan.

Lastly, regional cooperation is also essential in our fight against transboundary haze. We continue to support initiatives that can help prevent future occurrences of the haze at regional fora, such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). For example, Singapore hosts the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre, which provides daily hotspot information and other monitoring and assessment functions for the region. We also contribute to the capacity building efforts in the region through workshops under the Regional Haze Training Network for ASEAN Member States (AMS). In addition, Singapore has been actively participating in the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution to ensure that regional countries, such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Thailand, undertake collective action to tackle the haze problem. We had also developed an ASEAN Sub-regional Haze Monitoring System (AHMS) to improve transparency and accountability on companies and to promote sustainable land clearing practices by the landowners and have been working with MSC countries to operationalise the AHMS.

In August this year, the Roadmap on ASEAN Cooperation towards Transboundary Haze Pollution Control with Means of Implementation was formally adopted by AMS at the 12th Conference of Parties to the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution in Kuala Lumpur. It serves as a strategic framework to implement collaborative actions to achieve a vision of "Transbounday Haze-Free ASEAN by 2020".

We must press on with our efforts, not just during the haze season, but consistently throughout the year because haze is a serious environmental disaster with wide-ranging impact for us now, and into the future. Irresponsible burning over the years has affected the health of millions of people, impacted regional economies, and caused irreversible loss of biodiversity. We cannot rest on our past efforts and must continue to urge all relevant parties to work together towards realising a haze-free ASEAN by 2020 if not earlier.