The 15th Meeting of the Technical Working Group and Sub-RegionalMinisterial Steering Committee on transboundary haze pollution tookplace in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from July 15-17 to seek a solution forthe problem.

Environment ministers from Malaysia,Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand attended the meeting,discussing efforts, strategic cooperation measures to combat thecurrent haze crisis, resulting from forest fires in Riau, Indonesia.

At the meeting, Indonesian Environment MinisterBalthashar Kambuaya said that Indonesia will ratify the ASEANAgreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution by year-end or early nextyear.

He said the Indonesian Government has signedthe agreement, but it will be discussed in the Parliament for a finaldecision.

ASEAN Secretary-General Le Luong Minh saidthat the move showed the Indonesian Government is ready to mobiliseavailable resources to put out fires and eradicate the haze problem.

Speaking to reporters after the joint press conference on July 17, thefinal day of the three-day meeting, Secretary-General Minh commendedIndonesia's spirit of cooperation, saying that with this success,ASEAN are able to achieve the agreement.

He alsourged continued vigilance on the possibility of a recurrence of the hazeand ways to improve the system of monitoring while reminding countriesconcerned to be ready to train and educate the authorities and relevantbodies to prevent the haze situation.

Indonesiais the only member of ASEAN that has yet to ratify the group’sAgreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution brokered in 2002.

During the meeting, the ministers agreed to recommend adopting thehaze monitoring system, with digitised land-use maps and concession mapson fire-prone areas that cause transboundary haze.

On concession map, the ASEAN Secretary-General said it was developed bySingapore and the publication of the map will be decided at the ASEANLeaders' Summit in Brunei in October this year.-VNA