VZCZCXRO4997
RR RUEHAST RUEHCHI RUEHDH RUEHDT RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHNH RUEHPB
RUEHPOD RUEHSL RUEHTM RUEHTRO
DE RUEHKL #0699/01 2300849
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 180849Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY KUALA LUMPUR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3126
INFO RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHINGTON DC
RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KUALA LUMPUR 000699 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR CA/OCS/EAP 
STATE FOR EAP/MTS FOR DBISCHOF 
STATE FOR OES 
STATE FOR REO/BKK FOR HHOWARD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO AMED CASC EAGR AMGT PGOV MY ECON
SUBJECT: HAZE IN MALAYSIA CAME EARLY, STICKING AROUND 
 
REF: A. 2008 Kuala Lumpur 717 
     ¶B. 2009 Jakarta 1339 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: The annual haze came early to Malaysia this year, 
starting in late May.  Forest and peat fires primarily in Indonesia 
are the main cause of the haze, although some burning in Malaysia, 
including in the Bakun Dam region of Sarawak, has contributed to the 
problem.  The haze has dramatically reduced air quality in Malaysia 
over the summer with the Department of the Environment (DOE) 
categorizing several days as unhealthy due to excessive particulate 
matter (PM).  Visibility has been dramatically reduced perhaps 
causing some flight cancelations and delays at local airports. 
While the Government of Malaysia (GOM) has engaged in cloud-seeding 
exercises, ultimately the authorities are counting on Mother Nature 
in the form of rain to bring the problem under control. 
Unfortunately, the dry season is predicted to last until perhaps 
October and hundreds of fires continue to burn in the region. 
Environment Minister Douglas Unggah traveled to Indonesia on August 
8 to discuss the haze problem with his counterpart.  END SUMMARY. 
 
------------------------ 
Haze Season Starts Early 
------------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) Malaysia's annual haze season started early this year with 
smoke from forest and peat fires in Indonesia and Malaysia creating 
a gray blanket over much of the country over the past two months. 
The haze is an annual event during the relatively dry summer months 
where open burning from both man-made and natural fires becomes 
difficult to control (see Ref A. for a report on the haze situation 
last year).  The situation is exacerbated by the draining of peat 
swamps from logging and land conversion in both Indonesia and 
Malaysia.  Without rain, these drained peat swamps will smolder 
interminably once lit.  The haze is typically the worst in July and 
August but this year the situation started early with much media 
fanfare.  The GOM is currently tracking more than 50 "hotspots" or 
fires in both the Peninsula and Borneo but there have been as many 
¶900. 
 
------------------- 
Air Pollutant Index 
------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Malaysia Depart of the Environment (DOE) maintains an Air 
Pollutant Index (API).  This measurement is posted to the DOE web 
site (www.doe.gov.my) originally twice each day, at 11:00 AM and 
5:00 PM but a third 7:00 AM posting has been added since August 11. 
The index takes into consideration PM10 (for particulate matter 
under 10 microns), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), 
ground-level ozone (O3), and carbon monoxide (CO); Malaysia does not 
currently have a separate PM2.5 measurement and there are no actual 
ambient air quality standards for any of the measured five 
pollutants - just guidelines issued in 1988.  The API methodology is 
based on U.S. EPA's Air Quality Index (AQI).  Like the AQI, Malaysia 
reports the day's API as the highest single score from the 
above-mentioned five pollutants. The score is then categorized as 
Good (0-50), Moderate (51-100), Unhealthy (101-200), Very Unhealthy 
(201-300), and Hazardous (>301).  In almost every case, the highest 
reading is for PM10, which therefore drives the daily API rating. 
 
¶4. (SBU) The API is measured in 50 locations nationwide and the 
score typically falls in the Good or low Moderate category when it 
is not haze season.  From June 1 of this year, Kuala Lumpur's API 
has fallen in the Moderate category 90% of the time, with about half 
of those days nearing the Unhealthy level.  Kuala Lumpur has had two 
days categorized as Unhealthy.  The API in East Malaysia (Borneo) 
was relatively better than the Peninsula until recently.  Starting 
on about August 3, fires in Indonesian Kalimantan and East Malaysia 
created a thick haze, which was particularly bad in the Sarawak 
cities of Miri, Sibu, and Bintulu.  Several of these areas have 
faced multiple days of Unhealthy API readings occasionally bordering 
on Very Unhealthy. 
 
---------------- 
Who Is to Blame? 
---------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Blame for the haze gets pinned on a variety of actors but 
almost all parties in Malaysia agree that the vast majority of the 
problem comes from Indonesia (see Ref B. for related reporting from 
Indonesia).  For its part, Malaysia has implemented a no-burn policy 
within oil palm plantations during the haze season, but enforcement 
is questionable according to several local NGO representatives. 
 
KUALA LUMP 00000699  002 OF 003 
 
 
Most Malaysian large plantation owners blame the problem on a large 
number of small scale slash and burn farmers.  Small-scale shift 
farming, which does use slash and burn methods, is still practiced 
within parts of Malaysia but this is decreasing in size.  Land 
conversion from forest to plantation may be the more important 
culprit as fires are intentionally started to clear the land for oil 
palm according to several NGO sources in Sarawak.  Manually clearing 
the land would lead to revenue from timber but with the high price 
of palm oil, it may be more profitable for some firms to simply burn 
the land. 
 
--------------- 
Sarawak Burning 
--------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) The situation in Malaysia could get worse however, as 
revelations surfaced on August 17 that massive burning is planned in 
order to complete the Bakun Dam in Sarawak.  Sarawak Conservation 
Action Network (SCANE), a local NGO network, has alleged that the 
developer of the dam plans to burn the on-site debris rather than 
transport it.  The area in question is larger than 64,000 hectares 
and may be as large as 80,000 hectares, larger than Singapore.  The 
government has yet to respond, but the dam is much maligned by 
environmental groups like SCANE.  As such, the scope of this burning 
is still unclear especially with regard to what extent it will 
impact the air quality.  Sarawak Hidro, the company building the 
dam, managing director Zulkifle Osman acknowledged to local media 
that the clearing of "biomass" in the Bakun reservoir had started, 
but he did not elaborate on the method.  Reporters from The Star, a 
local newspaper, have reportedly entered the site and found that, 
despite no evidence of a burn permit, some burning has indeed 
already commenced but no reports of wide-scale fires.  The area is 
slated to be flooded by October. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Sarawak state Natural Resources and Environment Board 
(NREB) controller Penguang Manggil said that open burning is 
currently banned in the state and all licenses have been suspended 
for the time being.  Fines of RM9,000 (about USD2,500) are issued 
for first-time and small offenses with a possibility of RM30,000 
(about USD8,500) and imprisonment for guilty verdicts if a larger 
case goes to trial.  He stated that so far 25-30 of the smaller 
fines have been issued this year.  It is unclear still if any 
charges will be issued for the burning in the Bakun Dam area.  So 
far, no one has been taken to court. 
 
------------------- 
Malaysia's Response 
------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) The GOM continues to fight fires as they arise but water 
levels have become low without adequate rain.  Not content to merely 
wait for rain, the GOM has engaged in proactive cloud seeding in 
Sarawak.  This exercise has led to patches of rain but not enough to 
truly end the dry spell.  Dr. Yap Kok Seng, Director General of the 
Malaysia Meteorological Department (MMD), has argued that cloud 
seeding only works with suitable clouds, which are rare this time of 
year.  Despite some brief rain this week, Dr. Yap said that the dry 
season is predicted to continue perhaps well into October.  In the 
meantime, the GOM has advised individuals to avoid outdoor 
activities when the air is unhealthy.  These warnings have often 
come in conjunction with H1N1 warnings to curb unnecessary social 
gatherings. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Minister of Natural Resoruces and the Environment Douglas 
Unggah traveled to Indonesia on August 8 to discuss the haze problem 
with his GOI counterpart, Rachmat Witoelar.  This was the latest 
session in an ongoing dialogue between the two countries on ways of 
mitigating the annual haze.  Malaysia has previously offered 
technical assistance and remote monitoring to Indonesia for forest 
fire fighting and the two countries signed a memorandum of 
understanding last year, which has so far led to the creation of a 
monitoring station and courses on zero-burning methods for 
Indonesian farmers.  At this latest meeting, Minister Unggah 
proposed damming peat swamps so the water can be used to fight 
fires.  Malaysian Housing and Local Government Minister Kong Cho Ha 
said on August 11, that Malaysia was ready to send help in the form 
of manpower to Indonesia for firefighting but so far, no GOI request 
has been made. 
 
¶10. (SBU) More substantive actions may not be forthcoming because of 
reluctance on the Indonesian side to accept responsibility; GOI 
deputy environment minister for law enforcement Illyas Asaad 
reportedly expressed his doubts on August 6 that the Malaysian haze 
 
KUALA LUMP 00000699  003 OF 003 
 
 
comes from Indonesia.  He told Indonesian media that the GOI has yet 
to take any urgent steps with regard to the fires.  Indonesian 
Forestry Minister M.S. Kaban told the Indonesian media on August 4 
that the GOI would only take firm action to control fires if haze 
disturbed flights and sparked protests in Malaysia and Singapore. 
 
¶11. (SBU) The local media has reported that several domestic and 
international flights have been canceled or delayed throughout the 
summer due to the poor visibility, especially in East Malaysia.  In 
most cases, the delays are short, 30 minutes or less, until 
visibility improves.  Kamaruzzaman Razali, manager of manager of 
Malaysia Airports Sdn Bhd (MAB) has disputed these claims, stating 
that the reported delays were probably technical in nature and not 
due to decreased visibility from haze.  Regardless, visibility has 
been affected.  Visibility is usually about four to ten kilometers 
in Kuala Lumpur on a clear day but has dropped to two kilometers 
during the haze.  The visibility in parts of Sarawak has reportedly 
dropped below 800 meters on occasion this summer, while visibility 
in Riau, Indonesia, where the worst fires are burning, is reportedly 
less than 50 meters, reportedly causing the airport there to close 
for extended periods of time. 
 
 
KEITH