9/27/2015

Transboundary Haze Pollution Act in action

According to Vivian the govt is invoking the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act to take the companies suspected of being the cause of the haze to task. According to Channel News Asia, Singapore is taking legal action. However the paper also said, and I quote, ‘APP was asked by Singapore's National Environment Agency to supply information on its subsidiaries operating in Singapore and Indonesia, as well as measures taken by its suppliers in Indonesia to put out fires in their concessions.’ So, is this part of the legal action or just asking to provide information?

By the way, I just took a peep at the window and the sky is clear, no haze. Would the legal action be stopped now that the haze is no longer in the air?  At the way the haze came and gone, would it affect the legal actions or would the legal actions go on until the culprit is found guilty and the court imposes a sentence? The whole process could take some time and by the next haze season, the case could still be in court. And there are provisions for appeals which would drag on further. How long would the whole legal process take before a final judgement is conclusive?

One thing good about the legal process is that it would keep the companies busy in the court and keep paying legal fees even if they are found not guilty. The effort to bring them to court and the publicity plus the legal fees hopefully would be painful enough to make these companies, or just one company, to think twice about being a party to the haze problem.

APP would be the first to face the music for being a registered company here. What about Indonesian companies that have no office here?  Would they be sued here or in Indonesia? Or nothing really can be done to them? Channel News Asia reported that four Indonesian companies, ‘Rimba Hutani Mas, Sebangun Bumi Andalas Wood Industries, Bumi Sriwijaya Sentosa and Wachyuni Mandira -- have been told to take measures to extinguish fires on their land, refrain from starting new ones, and submit action plans to prevent future fires.’ These companies must be working hard at it after receiving the demands from Singapore govt. Just hope they did not throw the letters into the fire to add to the haze.

Oh, Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Singapore should be grateful for the whole year of oxygen provided by Indonesia and should not complain about the haze. Vivian could tell him that Singapore is a green country with plenty of oxygen of our own. And Indonesia can switch off the oxygen from their jungles or build a wall to prevent the oxygen from crossing the Straits of Malacca. They can keep all the oxygen to themselves, thank you very much.

The only thing perhaps Singapore can learn from the Indonesians is how to create smokes for military operations without spending on expensive smoke grenades. To throw smoke or haze in such a scale to blanket a few countries must be a very costly affair involving millions of smoke grenades. Tactically the SAF must start to think of countermeasures against the haze being used as a smoke screen for a military attack. Though this is remote as our relations with the Indonesians are very good, in times of animosity, what comes through many not be just haze and could be quite toxic or infectious. All our expensive military weaponry will be no match to a haze attack that can be done so cheaply, no need for soldiers, just a few farmers and a few match sticks and we can be defeated.

Come to think of it the haze problem could be an annual military war game the Indonesians are conducting to test its effectiveness on Singapore and Malaysia. And we really have no answers to it. Legal actions and the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act would be meaningless in times of war.

Now this is something that should deserve some detailed studies by the military strategists in Mindef.  Shall this be called biological warfare, chemical warfare or asymmetrical warfare?  Maybe the F35s would be the ultimate aircraft to deal with haze as a weapon of choice by an enemy. It is not funny that the most expensive and highly sophisticated military force in SE Asia could be rendered useless by haze. Mind you, the intensity of the haze is very light but if it is an all out hostile act, the whole island could be covered in darkness and visibility could be less than 10 metres. All human activities could be grounded to a halt, including commercial aircraft and shipping.


The Indonesians have stumbled into a very powerful weapon, cheap and effective, to deal with us or Malaysia if needed be. Singapore and Malaysia better be nicer to the Indonesians. They must be laughing their guts out everything we boast about buying more sophisticated and ultra expensive machine of war.

23 comments:

Goh said...

Never try to appease daft Sinkies by exposing our weaknesses of not being able to handle haze or take any unnecessary action that may make matter worse.
The more we expose our weaknesses the more haze one would expect.
Uncle RB is one of the few minority who has problem with haze.
Me do not feel the impact.
Think of the consequences of telling others what to do and whether we are capable of controlling the situation or do anything else we will only make a mockery of ourselves.
Be tactful and humble. Know our limit.
President Joko is doing his part.Have faith in him and avoid making it a bigger issue resulting in more losses .Mai Gookia erm part hor.
Cow son dun know tiger.
Go learn the story of the fisherman who caught a turtle and how the turtle manage to free itself using turtle brain.

Anonymous said...

If I were Hsien Loong, what really matters is that PAP got a 70% mandate in the recent elections.

And with that, all other issues, including haze, are secondary.

After all, what's the haze problem, as my office and even my whole house is properly filtered and aircon? And if that's not good enough, my family and I can always take a short holiday overseas if the haze gets too bad.

Anonymous said...

With the 70% mandate, PAP will be even less motivated to do the really hard and serious work of solving the haze problem. Why not they just said "there is only so much we can do", and which one Sinkie minister in fact did said, and perhaps with that, just close the case?

After all, despite the PAP screwups, if Sinkies can give such a strong mandate in GE 2015, what's the problem getting it again next election, u tell me lah?

Anonymous said...

Agongkia, seriously u need to be screwed to your senses. What the fuck are u talking about. Talking nonsense so fucking early in the morning and wasting people time reading the.crap.

Anonymous said...

GE 2011, we gave PAP 60% strong mandate.
We got haze.
GE 2015, we give PAP 70% stronger mandate.
We still got haze.

So GE 2020 how?
Give 80% lagi strong mandate is it?

Then no more haze problem is it?
No more train breakdown is it?
PMETs will no longer be sacked unfairly is it?
Our children can find good job is it?

We can all hands in a circle jerk and sing Kumbaya with PAP Ministers is it?

70% strong mandate.
Hallelujah!
Singaporeans are all saved.
It's a miracle.

Kumbaya Ah Loong! Kumbaya!
Kumbaya Ah Loong! Kumbaya!

Virgo49 said...

Aiyo, it boils down to monies lah!

Got monies got water to put out fires

No monies no water to put out fires

Don't send your fires fighting planes, we had 140 Liao

Just send us the millions

Wah Sin dollars very strong

Goh said...

@anon 11.54
Simple la.Next time when you see the moniker "agongkia " just skip over.
Like RB , I may not agree with some of his views but that does not give me the right to ask him not to write or claim he is uttering rubbish.
You are welcome to challenge my view or disagree with me.
Some of my views are like RB, intentionally to provoke and illicit response.
Some mei meis and the you know who oso come here just to enjoy and kapo my views.Just that you dun know:-)
Some hint may appear to be rubbish to you but is valuable to others.
Besides staying anon, what other constructive contribution have or can you provide.
Nothing to do go carry lantern.
See ? We losing our local culture soon.
Uncle RB oso blog till he forgotten today is 中秋节。
Should treasure his valuable contribution.
Happy 中秋节 to all esp.Uncle RB.

Anonymous said...

What stupidity. An issue with plantation owners indiscriminate burning becomes an issue with Indonesians in general and the govt in particular.

Stop talking rubbish and just deal with the plantation owners. The Indon govt also not happy with the plantation owners for ruining their reputation and the lives of Indonesians.

The said...

/// Oh, Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Singapore should be grateful for the whole year of oxygen provided by Indonesia and should not complain about the haze. Vivian could tell him that Singapore is a green country with plenty of oxygen of our own. And Indonesia can switch off the oxygen from their jungles or build a wall to prevent the oxygen from crossing the Straits of Malacca. They can keep all the oxygen to themselves, thank you very much. ///

This buffoon Kalla is talking through the wrong end of his alimentary canal. The primary forest in Indonesia is god-given, whereas the slash and burn is man-made. Tell Kalla, no we don't want your oxygen during the 11 months. Or does he want us to pay him for the use of his oxygen?

The Indonesian plantation owners and farmers are smart. They only burn during the Southwest Monsoon season when the wind is blowing from Kalimantan and Sumatra towards Malaysia and Singapore and away from Jakarta. As long as Jakarta does not suffer the brunt of the haze or not as badly as Kalimantan, Sumatra, Singapore and Malaysia, the politicians based in Jakarta will sit on their butt or talk through their butt. Maybe they should burn the forest during the Northeast Monsoon season instead.

Anonymous said...

They only burn during the Southwest Monsoon season when the wind is blowing from Kalimantan and Sumatra towards Malaysia and Singapore and away from Jakarta.
The 3:29 p.m.

Ya hor, no wonder the haze always happen around the Jun to Sep period of the year.

Anonymous said...

What does our Employees' Handbook "The Half Truths" say about dealing with foreign government?

Goh said...

June to September is a dry season.
Nothing to do with wind direction.
Indonesian also affected. Go northern Sumatra like Medan to experience yourself.

virgo49 said...

Ahgongkia, if only their own jokers dont burn they do not sufer lah.

What for built canals if no water and the jokers still burn.???

Goh said...

Lauchek
Not all fires are caused by arson.Do not be too carried away.Better to think of solution than to point fingers.
I only have one word to say for such haze from neighbouring countries .
以柔制刚

Virgo 49 said...

The simplest solution is to kill some chickens to frighten the monkeys

Follow the PRC. Whether you white cats or black cats, you commit crimes no feeding you extra food for another day, same day send you to heaven

Too many of their kind condone the heinous acts of their own kind that's why the world topsy turvrey

Just mete out punishment and you have clean air forever unless you have God s disasters

Just like the schools, assembly give the bullies five strokes of the canes in public and thereafter no more bullies

Our time parents caned second time at home when they found out you kena caned in schools

That's how you get uoright guy like ahgongkia

Cheers

jjgg said...

So...what use our expensive flying toys? Couple of matchsticks n our little red dot is enshrouded..nuke Malaysia oso no go..wind direction will make sure all the radioactivity clouds n rain will come our way..perhaps our enemies are further afoot..marauding Chinese ...in cursive Indians etc etc but hold your horses bro...the marauding Chinese n in cursive. Indians are already here n have taken over large tracts of the East ..Geylang n Chinatown ....hehe

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

The haze issue is about private commercial enterprises and their irresponsible acts with no regards to the environment and health of people affected. The two govts are on the same side. Maybe some individuals have the palms greased and thus came out to defend the culprits.

Imagine all the factories were to dump their toxic waste into the rivers, lakes and oceans?

The said...

/// agongkia said...
June to September is a dry season.
Nothing to do with wind direction.
Indonesian also affected. Go northern Sumatra like Medan to experience yourself. ///

Yes, those are the dry months, AND also when the Southwest monsoon direction is blowing towards Kalimantan, Sumatra, Malaysia and Singapore.

I already said Sumatra is affected - can't you read? The key is Jakarta - where all the politicians sit on their butt. They are not as badly affected as the wind direction is away from Jakarta most of the time during this season.

Goh said...

@The
Go Jkt now to see whether affected or not.Of course one will not feel affected if one is only there to hug cewat in the hotel room.
Please lah.Its not as if they sky is dropping:-)

The said...

gongkia - note the word "not as badly affected". First you talk about Sumatra, now Jakarta - stop moving the goal posts. Just read what I wrote in the entirety. Learn to read first gongkia. Really talking to a gongkia.

Anonymous said...

One question.

How are they going to find out which Company is responsible for the smoke or haze being blown towards Singapore?

If they think that with the 70% mandate they can do it, good luck.

Anonymous said...

Just ask them to kee chiu lah. What's so difficult?

Virgo49 said...

Now president said need three years to stop the slash and burn.
So you have to suffer anothet three more good years.

Learn from president teng siow ping.

Let the tanks rolled.

This is how you control billions of people

Kill the chickens to frighten the monkeys