Bangkok, November 24, 2003 - Heat seeking satellites, better trained
fire fighters and a
crack down on arsonists and irresponsible plantation owners are among a series
of government-backed measures aimed at reducing devastating forest fires in
Southeast Asia.
Today (November 25) a legal agreement among the ten member countries of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) comes into force.
The ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution, designed to prevent haze
from land and forest fires, could become a global model for the tackling of
transboundary issues according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Signed by ASEAN members in June 2002, it is the first regional arrangement in
the world that binds a group of contiguous states to tackle haze pollution resulting
from land and forest fires.
UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer said today "I congratulate ASEAN
and the Governments of Southeast Asia for their foresight and commitment in
combating the threats posed by uncontrolled land and forest fires. Such fires
spell a double disaster for the environment through their massive release of
greenhouse gases and their destruction of biodiversity."
About 10 million hectares of Indonesia's forests, one of the world's centres
of biodiversity, were destroyed in 1997-98 in fires started mainly on oil palm
plantations and agricultural and forestry holdings on the islands of Sumatra
and Kalimantan. The blazes were fanned by hot, dry conditions caused by the
El Nino weather phenomena. More than 20 million people were exposed to breathing
extremely high levels of pollutants known to cause both acute and long-term
health effects, airports in Singapore and neighbouring countries were closed
by thick smog, and total economic losses across the region were estimated at
around US$9.3 billion.
The agreement contains provisions on monitoring, assessment and prevention,
technical cooperation and scientific research, mechanisms for coordination,
lines of communication, information exchange, simplified customs and immigration
procedures for emergency response and disaster relief, and establishment of
an ASEAN Coordinating Centre for activities under the agreement.
In 1998 UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed Mr Toepfer to coordinate inter-agency
assistance to the ASEAN countries to fight land and forest fires and to develop
long-term preventative responses.
Beginning in March 2001 UNEP, in collaboration with the ASEAN Secretariat, assisted
Government negotiators in meetings to develop the terms of the agreement.
The agreement enters into force today, 60 days after the deposit
of the sixth instrument of ratification by the Government of Thailand with the
Secretary General of ASEAN. Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore,
and Viet Nam have earlier deposited their instruments of ratification.
Mr Toepfer said there was now a comprehensive system of prevention and response
in place. "As well as the legal framework, we have an action plan to build
fire fighting capability in the region, an early warning system which uses high
resolution satellite imagery to detect hotspots, and proven commitment by governments
to get tough on forest and plantation owners who flout anti-burning laws."
He said UNEP would continue to provide support for ASEAN in implementation of
the agreement, through capacity building in areas such as monitoring, legislation
and education and the convening of the first Meeting of the Conference of Parties.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is composed of Brunei Darussalam,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand, and Viet Nam.
For further information:
The ASEAN Haze Action Online site is at - www.haze-online.or.id
Contact:
Tim Higham, Regional Information Officer, UNEP/ROAP, Bangkok, Thailand, tel:
662-288-2127, email: higham@un.org; or Nick
Nuttall, Head of Media Services, UNEP, Nairobi, phone +254 2 623084, nick.nuttall@unep.org
UNEP News Release ROAP 2003/14