PUTRAJAYA, Oct 22 — Malaysia will introduce several transformative measures to strengthen efforts to tackle transboundary haze when it chairs the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution next year.

Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup said his ministry was conducting studies and drafting several new initiatives to ensure more effective and concrete action to address the recurring haze problem.

“Malaysia will take over the MSC chairmanship next year, and we are studying and planning several new initiatives to strengthen Asean-level efforts to tackle the haze problem.

“We hope to take more effective and concrete measures when we chair the MSC,” he told a press conference on the latest haze situation here today.

He said Malaysia proposed two key initiatives at the Asean ministerial meeting on July 9: science diplomacy, to ensure planning, action and spending to tackle haze are based on scientific data, enabling more targeted fire prevention and suppression efforts, and the setting up of a sustainable haze fund.

“The proposed sustainable haze fund, if approved, would serve as an Asean-level mechanism to help member states strengthen prevention, preparedness and monitoring measures,” he said.

He said most fires involved extremely dry peatland, where they could spread underground undetected for weeks or months, highlighting the need to study new technologies, including dry ice-based methods, to improve firefighting efforts.

In a related development, Arthur said Malaysia had also introduced the Malaysian Community Multiscale Air Quality Model (CMAQ), which can forecast potential air pollution and haze up to five days in advance.

He said the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) had developed the platform to provide detailed air quality forecasts for Malaysia and the wider Southeast Asian region.

“We hope other countries will also adopt the system so that the public can plan and prepare up to five days in advance,” he said, adding that the platform began operating this year and is open to the public and Asean member states.

On the haze situation, Arthur said the transition to the Northeast Monsoon, expected to begin in late October, could alter the movement of transboundary haze currently affecting several areas in the south of the country, particularly Sarawak and Johor.

He said shifts in wind direction during the Northeast Monsoon could carry haze to other areas, easing its impact on areas currently affected, noting that haze drifting northwards from the south had significantly affected southern Sarawak, Johor and Singapore.

However, Arthur said Malaysia faced a greater risk of transboundary haze as the Super El Niño phenomenon was forecast to intensify from this month until January 2027, increasing the likelihood of forest and peatland fires in the region.

He said the El Niño phenomenon is expected to persist until mid-2027, with the year potentially among the hottest on record, bringing increasingly erratic rainfall, a higher risk of drought and more hotspots and fires that could worsen the haze.

“We also forecast that next year could be among the hottest on record, with temperature anomalies exceeding 2°C,” he said, adding that the government had taken into account the experience of the 2015-2016 Super El Niño, when rainfall decreased by up to 30 per cent in peninsular Malaysia and 45 per cent in Sabah.

He said prolonged hot and dry conditions would not only increase the risk of forest and peatland fires but could also affect agriculture, food security, water supplies and public health. — Bernama

KUCHING (Oct 22): A flood mitigation project worth RM87 million is set to bring long-awaited relief to more than 1,000 households in the Stampin Resettlement Scheme, where residents have grappled with flooding for over five decades.

Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian said the project, expected to be completed within 30 months, would benefit approximately 9,000 residents by addressing long-standing drainage problems in the area.

He acknowledged that the resettlement scheme had lacked a comprehensive drainage system for decades, contributing to persistent flooding during heavy rainfall.

Dr Sim, who is also State Minister of Public Health, Housing and Local Government, said the first phase of the project, to be implemented by the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID), would focus on upgrading the main drainage network to improve water flow and reduce the risk of flash floods.

“This includes integrating drainage channels that lead toward the Sarawak River and incorporating designated drainage infrastructure to facilitate smoother water flow, thereby reducing the risk of flash floods,” he said at the project’s groundbreaking ceremony here.

He explained that drainage improvements must begin with the main trunk drains before smaller drains along residential lanes could be connected to the network.

“We must first establish the large, main drains, and then connect the smaller drains to the main ones.

“If we were to start with the smaller drains, the rainwater would still not flow into the main network,” he said.

Dr Sim said the current phase would concentrate on strengthening the overall drainage network and flood mitigation capacity, while improvements to drains in front of individual homes and along smaller lanes would be undertaken in subsequent phases.

He said the relatively lengthy construction period was necessary because the project involved areas with existing water pipes and other public utilities, requiring careful coordination to minimise disruption to residents.

“Drainage projects are complex; beyond requiring a thorough understanding of local topography and water flow patterns, they must also account for factors such as surrounding land development, drainage outlets and river water levels,” he said.

Citing the Sarawak General Hospital area as an example, Dr Sim noted that flooding had recently occurred in places that had not previously experienced such problems.

He attributed this to development in surrounding areas, which had altered the original topography and drainage conditions, leaving certain low-lying areas vulnerable to waterlogging.

“This highlights the necessity of incorporating drainage systems into development,” he said.

Dr Sim also pointed out that climate change had brought increasingly unpredictable heavy rainfall, making it necessary to reassess conventional approaches to drainage planning.

He said relying solely on historical rainfall data from the past century might no longer be sufficient to anticipate future extreme weather conditions.

Instead, he stressed the importance of adopting modern techniques, including computer modelling, to assess drainage requirements under different rainfall scenarios.

“The government will continue to implement drainage improvement projects in phases, progressively enhancing local flood mitigation capabilities to ensure a safer and more comfortable living environment for all,” he said.

PUTRAJAYA, Oct 22 — Malaysia will introduce several transformative measures to strengthen efforts to tackle transboundary haze when it chairs the Sub-Regional Ministerial Steering Committee (MSC) on Transboundary Haze Pollution next year.

Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup said his ministry was conducting studies and drafting several new initiatives to ensure more effective and concrete action to address the recurring haze problem.

“Malaysia will take over the MSC chairmanship next year, and we are studying and planning several new initiatives to strengthen Asean-level efforts to tackle the haze problem.

“We hope to take more effective and concrete measures when we chair the MSC,” he told a press conference on the latest haze situation here today.

He said Malaysia proposed two key initiatives at the Asean ministerial meeting on July 9: science diplomacy, to ensure planning, action and spending to tackle haze are based on scientific data, enabling more targeted fire prevention and suppression efforts, and the setting up of a sustainable haze fund.

“The proposed sustainable haze fund, if approved, would serve as an Asean-level mechanism to help member states strengthen prevention, preparedness and monitoring measures,” he said.

He said most fires involved extremely dry peatland, where they could spread underground undetected for weeks or months, highlighting the need to study new technologies, including dry ice-based methods, to improve firefighting efforts.

In a related development, Arthur said Malaysia had also introduced the Malaysian Community Multiscale Air Quality Model (CMAQ), which can forecast potential air pollution and haze up to five days in advance.

He said the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) had developed the platform to provide detailed air quality forecasts for Malaysia and the wider Southeast Asian region.

“We hope other countries will also adopt the system so that the public can plan and prepare up to five days in advance,” he said, adding that the platform began operating this year and is open to the public and Asean member states.

On the haze situation, Arthur said the transition to the Northeast Monsoon, expected to begin in late October, could alter the movement of transboundary haze currently affecting several areas in the south of the country, particularly Sarawak and Johor.

He said shifts in wind direction during the Northeast Monsoon could carry haze to other areas, easing its impact on areas currently affected, noting that haze drifting northwards from the south had significantly affected southern Sarawak, Johor and Singapore.

However, Arthur said Malaysia faced a greater risk of transboundary haze as the Super El Niño phenomenon was forecast to intensify from this month until January 2027, increasing the likelihood of forest and peatland fires in the region.

He said the El Niño phenomenon is expected to persist until mid-2027, with the year potentially among the hottest on record, bringing increasingly erratic rainfall, a higher risk of drought and more hotspots and fires that could worsen the haze.

“We also forecast that next year could be among the hottest on record, with temperature anomalies exceeding 2°C,” he said, adding that the government had taken into account the experience of the 2015-2016 Super El Niño, when rainfall decreased by up to 30 per cent in peninsular Malaysia and 45 per cent in Sabah.

He said prolonged hot and dry conditions would not only increase the risk of forest and peatland fires but could also affect agriculture, food security, water supplies and public health. — Bernama

KUCHING (Oct 22): A flood mitigation project worth RM87 million is set to bring long-awaited relief to more than 1,000 households in the Stampin Resettlement Scheme, where residents have grappled with flooding for over five decades.

Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian said the project, expected to be completed within 30 months, would benefit approximately 9,000 residents by addressing long-standing drainage problems in the area.

He acknowledged that the resettlement scheme had lacked a comprehensive drainage system for decades, contributing to persistent flooding during heavy rainfall.

Dr Sim, who is also State Minister of Public Health, Housing and Local Government, said the first phase of the project, to be implemented by the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID), would focus on upgrading the main drainage network to improve water flow and reduce the risk of flash floods.

“This includes integrating drainage channels that lead toward the Sarawak River and incorporating designated drainage infrastructure to facilitate smoother water flow, thereby reducing the risk of flash floods,” he said at the project’s groundbreaking ceremony here.

He explained that drainage improvements must begin with the main trunk drains before smaller drains along residential lanes could be connected to the network.

“We must first establish the large, main drains, and then connect the smaller drains to the main ones.

“If we were to start with the smaller drains, the rainwater would still not flow into the main network,” he said.

Dr Sim said the current phase would concentrate on strengthening the overall drainage network and flood mitigation capacity, while improvements to drains in front of individual homes and along smaller lanes would be undertaken in subsequent phases.

He said the relatively lengthy construction period was necessary because the project involved areas with existing water pipes and other public utilities, requiring careful coordination to minimise disruption to residents.

“Drainage projects are complex; beyond requiring a thorough understanding of local topography and water flow patterns, they must also account for factors such as surrounding land development, drainage outlets and river water levels,” he said.

Citing the Sarawak General Hospital area as an example, Dr Sim noted that flooding had recently occurred in places that had not previously experienced such problems.

He attributed this to development in surrounding areas, which had altered the original topography and drainage conditions, leaving certain low-lying areas vulnerable to waterlogging.

“This highlights the necessity of incorporating drainage systems into development,” he said.

Dr Sim also pointed out that climate change had brought increasingly unpredictable heavy rainfall, making it necessary to reassess conventional approaches to drainage planning.

He said relying solely on historical rainfall data from the past century might no longer be sufficient to anticipate future extreme weather conditions.

Instead, he stressed the importance of adopting modern techniques, including computer modelling, to assess drainage requirements under different rainfall scenarios.

“The government will continue to implement drainage improvement projects in phases, progressively enhancing local flood mitigation capabilities to ensure a safer and more comfortable living environment for all,” he said.