Five southeast countries team up to fight Indonesian haze
Five southeast Asian countries have recently endorsed a joint plan of action to fight the haze caused by Indonesian forest fires. The haze was at its worse this season, leading to the closure of airports, offices and schools. It affected much of the southeast Asia for months until rains a few weeks ago.
As per the anti-haze plan, environment ministers from Indonesia and its neighbouring countries (Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and Thailand) will set up an early warning system and build dams to divert water to underground peat-lands. The plan also mandates to set up community-based fire-fighting brigades and undertake various educational projects and subsidies for forest farmers, in an attempt to discourage them from slash-and-burn practices. The countries were getting frustrated with Indonesia's recurring forest fires.