Indonesia's peat fires drive region's worst haze in a decade

· Climate · Indonesia · Malaysia

Indonesia is facing its worst wildfire season in a decade, with a "Super El Nino" fuelling months-long peat fires that have made hundreds of thousands of people sick. On Oct 20, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Jakarta were listed among the world's 10 most-polluted major cities by IQAir. Malaysia's parliament was told a transboundary haze law is possible but enforcement is hard because evidence linking fires to specific actors is difficult to obtain; Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta are exploring a memorandum of understanding on sharing hotspot data. Students plan a national protest in Jakarta on Oct 28, and the haze also threatens the insects that pollinate palm oil.

Why it matters：The fires tie a climate-driven drought to regional health, tourism and food-supply risks, testing whether Southeast Asian governments can enforce cross-border accountability.

Key points

  • A "Super El Nino" has fuelled months of peat fires.
  • Three Southeast Asian capitals ranked among the 10 most-polluted major cities on Oct 20.
  • Palm oil pollination is at risk from the haze.

Sources (original reporting)

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