Haze will not last till March 2016

Haze will not last till March 2016

The haze affecting the country currently will not last till March 2016, as claimed by certain parties.

"The current haze situation is caused by typhoon Champi and Typhoon Koppu, east of the Philippines, and when these typhoons hit landfall, the winds will change and the haze situation will improve after Oct 26," said Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Seri Madius Tangau in a statement today.

Madius said the coming northeast monsoon season from November will see a change in wind direction and will no longer carry over haze from Indonesia to Malaysia, despite the Indonesian forest fires expected to last until March.

Meanwhile, rainfall is expected to decrease nationwide due to typhoon Koppu, thus making the haze situation even worse.

According to the Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) weather outlook, typhoon Koppu is currently 1,187km north-east of Kudat, Sabah. It will eventually head north-west towards Taiwan.

In addition, typhoon Champi located 2,942km north-east of Kudat is slowly heading north.

The presence of both typhoons has affected the wind patterns across the country as a result, especially rainfall due to the moderate south-westerly winds.

Separately, the Department of Environment recorded 3,534 cases of open burning detected nationwide, from the start of the year to Oct 19.

As of 6pm today, a total of 27 areas recorded unhealthy Air Pollutant Index (API) readings, with Port Klang with the highest at 179, followed by Shah Alam at 164, and Kuala Selangor at 139.

~News courtesy of The Sun~

中秋节快乐

Air quality in Peninsular Malaysia remains bad

Air quality in Peninsular Malaysia remains bad

Air quality remained bad today as the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia continued to be blanketed by a heavy shroud of haze, with many coastal cities recording an unhealthy reading on the Air Pollutant Index (API).

According to readings published on the Department of Environment's (DOE) website, six locations including Seremban, Malacca, and Putrajaya were rated as unhealthy (100-200) on the API as at 5pm today.

The Natural Resources and Environment Ministry said in a statement today that the haze is caused by open burning of forests and land in Sumatera, Indonesia according to satellite images captured by the Singaporean based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The agency detected 132 hot spots in Kalimantan, Indonesia, alone, while only one hot spot was detected in Sumatera due to incomplete satellite coverage as of Sunday.

According to satellite coverage, the ministry said, the haze is expected to spread to Pahang and to east Johor in the next 48 hours while in East Malaysia the haze from Kalimantan is expected to spread to west Sarawak and the waters surrounding both Sabah and Sarawak in the same period of time.

The ministry said the country is still experiencing the southwest monsoon phase that is expected to end by mid-September and noted that the haze will likely dissipate by the monsoon transition phase in October.

Meanwhile, the Environment Department will continue monitoring the status and trend of air quality on an hourly basis due to the uncertain haze situation and increased hot spots in Sumatera and Kalimantan.

All government agencies relevant to haze disaster response have also stepped up efforts in preventing open burning locally that will worsen the already unhealthy air quality.

Local governments and land owners have also been instructed to closely monitor and take preventive actions in places that could easily catch fire such as waste disposal spots, forests, farm land, and industrial complexes.

Meanwhile, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar will also head to Indonesia as soon as possible to meet his counterpart there to discuss solutions and to finalise a memorandum of understanding on cross-border haze prevention.

~News courtesy of The Sun~

Happy Independence Day 国庆日快乐

殿下为宝剑王冠广场开幕 逾千市民聚集迎驾

柔苏丹亲民之旅2015．殿下为宝剑王冠广场开幕 逾千市民聚集迎驾

柔佛苏丹依布拉欣今午驾驶豪华巴士，率领柔佛王室亲民之旅车队抵达丰盛港，並为市区海边新落成的宝剑王冠纪念广场主持开幕仪式，逾千市民夹道迎驾。

　殿下及王室成员车队首先前往兴楼奔雅蒙，殿下除了与子民互动外，也颁发援助品给当地弱势家庭。

　接著殿下回到丰盛港，为宝剑王冠纪念广场主持开幕仪式。

《中国报》

Berjaya launches ‘sea shelter’ programme to enhance marine life

Berjaya launches ‘sea shelter’ programme to enhance marine life



Vincent Tan (L) and his son Robin enjoying a dive while witnessing the laying of structures off Pulau

Berjaya Corporation (Berjaya Corp) recently took environmental sustainability to a new level by starting a "Shelter in the Sea for Marine Life" coral reef programme.

The RM200,000 project saw the laying of 67 concrete pipes, ranging from one to two metres in diameter, on the seabed between Berjaya Tioman Resort Dive Centre and Renggis Island off Johor.

Berjaya Group founder Tan Sri Vincent Tan, who put on a wetsuit to personally witness the laying of the pipes on the seabed, said the structures will encourage coral growth and also provide protection for marine life.

"We will also plant small corals on the pipes to generate faster growth. I believe it will help enhance Tioman's beauty, protect the fishes and enhance activities for divers here.

"We all like to dive through caves and tunnels, and using these pipes as 'artificial tunnels' could be the closest that one can get to diving through caves," he told reporters here on Saturday.

Tan, who has been diving since 1985, said the results of the project will be gauged over the next few of years.

He said although most environmentalists do not see eye-to-eye on developments at sea, projects like this can be good for the environment if enough efforts were taken.

"Environmentalists are often against development. They should dive more, see and understand for themselves the situation. In fact, a hundred years from now, the water here will still be very nice. I think it is okay if we take efforts to care for this island," he added.

The six-acre project, which is between eight and 11m, is said to provide a suitable habitat for algae and invertebrates, which in turn will create a sustainable ecosystem.

The strategic location of the project site near to the dive centre will also enable experts to monitor coral growth easily and plan further restoration programmes in future.

A survey by Reef Check Malaysia in 2014 found that the condition of coral reefs around Tioman Island is generally in good form, but faces various threats such as warm water bleaching and human factors like illegal fishing and irresponsible tourist behaviour.

Also present during the pipes-laying event were Tan's sons, Berjaya Corp chairman and CEO Datuk Seri Robin Tan and 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings Berhad executive director Tan U-Ming.

~News courtesy of The Sun~

占用森林保护区 再拆原住民临时住处

占用森林保护区 再拆原住民临时住处

丰盛港警方、县议会、森林局、公共工程局、志愿警卫团等单位100名执法人员，昨日到丰盛港兴楼路15公里处阿隆山森林保护区取缔占用土地的原住民，当地临时住处被夷为平地。

今年6月初，这批原住民同样被指非法占用森林保护区，执法单位已将非法兴建的木屋区拆除；惟较后在热心人士捐赠帐篷等设备下，原住民得以扎起临时住处。

新一轮的拆除临时住所行动，是在本月30日上午10时许开始，当局出动两辆“神手”投入工作，整个行动耗时5小时；被拆的临时住所共有12座，包括塑胶帐篷及亚答叶扎成的木屋。

据了解，拆除行动导致二十多名包括男女老幼原住民无家可归，可能会被迫露宿山区。

执法人员展开拆屋行动时，面对原住民屋主阻挠，但并无发生激烈的反抗，他们经有关官员的劝说，只好眼睁睁看着“家园”被毁；警方在较后，把当地49岁原住民村长阿旺带回警局问话。

据了解，这些原住民来自彭亨州，6年前他们因居住地将被发展，家园因此被拆除，该州政府当时准备协助原住民搬迁至市区居住，但原住民无法适应城市生活，改到柔州丰盛港偏僻的森林建木屋居住，生活了6年。

关注原住民遭遇的民众担忧，这已经是他们第三次遭遇拆屋厄运，今后不知会流落何处。

~南洋商报~