Smoke from Indonesia continues to affect Southeast Asia
Cleaner air in Singapore offers only temporary relief as more smoke is expected.
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Air quality in Singapore temporarily improved on Sunday as the wind changed, but remained unhealthy in many areas. According to Singapore’s National Environment Agency (NEA), smoke from fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan will continue to pose a risk to Singapore and Malaysia in the coming days.
The NEA reported on Sunday that many new fires and smoke plumes had been observed in parts of Kalimantan and Sumatra. Thick smoke and cloud cover meant satellites could not establish the full extent of the fires everywhere. The agency therefore warns that the situation in the region has not yet been fully assessed.
In Singapore, the air was clearer on Sunday than earlier in the week. According to Malay Mail, the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index, the local measure of air pollution, remained in the unhealthy range in all regions. The highest reading reached 192 in the west of the city-state; a reading of 109 was recorded in the north.
The improvement was linked to changing wind directions. For Monday, the NEA expects showers and winds from the south, which could temporarily reduce the flow of smoke from Kalimantan. At the same time, smoke from Sumatra may continue to reach Singapore. From Tuesday evening, another change in the wind could carry smoke from Kalimantan towards Singapore again.
The fires are also having consequences beyond Singapore. The smoke is crossing national borders and affecting parts of Malaysia. The precise contribution of individual fires and companies has not been established everywhere, but the NEA says the smoke may have originated from land belonging to seven Indonesian companies.
Singapore sent those companies preventive notices on 16 October under the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act. Under the notices, they must organise firefighting, prevent new fires and submit a plan to extinguish the fires or prevent them from recurring. The measure does not yet establish that the companies are legally responsible for the cross-border smoke.
The development once again shows how wildfires in Indonesia can become a regional environmental problem. Current readings are snapshots, and weather forecasts can change. It is nevertheless established that on Sunday the NEA was still reporting broad smoke plumes, many fires and unhealthy air quality in parts of the region.
Also show the region and a close-up
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- On 18 October, the NEA reported fires and smoke plumes in parts of Kalimantan and Sumatra.
- Air quality in Singapore remained unhealthy according to the local PSI measure, despite a temporary improvement.
- Singapore sent preventive notices to seven Indonesian companies, but did not thereby definitively establish their legal liability.
Left
Arguments The emphasis is on public health and on the responsibility of companies and governments to regulate fires, deforestation and land use more strictly. From this perspective, cross-border pollution requires firm enforcement and regional agreements.
Values Environmental protection, public health, corporate responsibility and international solidarity.
Consequences Without stricter controls, vulnerable residents may bear the costs of pollution while companies benefit from risky land use.
Centre
Arguments The institutional approach is to await measurements, satellite data and investigations into individual sites first. Preventive notices and cooperation between Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia can be combined with practical firefighting.
Values Careful evidential standards, feasibility, regional cooperation and legal certainty.
Consequences A step-by-step approach prevents hasty attribution of blame, but may work more slowly than the smoke and health problems develop.
Right
Arguments The emphasis is on national authority and on preventing Singapore or Malaysia from holding Indonesian companies collectively responsible without conclusive evidence. Indonesia must fight the fires itself, while neighbouring countries should primarily protect their own populations.
Values National sovereignty, property rights, proportionality and limited government intervention.
Consequences Restraint over cross-border sanctions can limit legal conflicts, but may leave less room for rapid regional enforcement.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The article’s core is based directly on current data from Singapore’s National Environment Agency and an independent regional news source. Uncertainties about the precise origin of the smoke and the companies’ legal responsibility are explicitly identified as uncertain.
- confirmed Air quality in Singapore temporarily improved on 18 October because of changing wind directions. — Mentioned in the NEA update and confirmed by Malay Mail. source
- confirmed The 24-hour PSI remained in the unhealthy range in Singapore, with a highest value of 192. — Reported by Malay Mail on the basis of NEA data. source
- confirmed Broad smoke plumes and many fires were observed in Kalimantan and Sumatra. — Established in the NEA’s current regional haze update. source
- confirmed The NEA sent preventive notices to seven Indonesian companies. — The NEA names the seven companies and the measures imposed in its statement of 16 October. source
- uncertain The seven companies are legally responsible for the cross-border smoke. — The NEA refers to indications and a possible connection; definitive liability has not been established. source
Editor's note
The current readings and forecasts come from Singapore’s National Environment Agency; Malay Mail confirms the local PSI figures and the temporary improvement. The full extent of the fires and the companies’ legal responsibility remain uncertain.Sources
- Regional Haze Situation — National Environment Agency Singapore
- NEA Issues Notices Under The Transboundary Haze Pollution Act — National Environment Agency Singapore
- Singapore gets a breather from haze, but smoke could return on Tuesday night — Malay Mail
More on this in Dutch media
- de Volkskrant — „rook bosbranden”
- NU.nl — „rook bosbranden”
- De Telegraaf — „rook bosbranden”