ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution

The business district of Kuala Lumpur in the evening of September 29, 2006. Menara Kuala Lumpur was barely visible.

Singapore's Downtown Core on 7 October 2006, when it was affected by forest fires in Sumatra, Indonesia.

Satellite photograph of the 2006 haze above Borneo

Severe haze affecting Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in August 2005

The ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution is an environmental agreement signed in 2002 between all ASEAN nations to reduce haze pollution in Southeast Asia

The agreement is a reaction to an environmental crisis that hit Southeast Asia in the late 1990s. The crisis was mainly caused by land clearing via open burning in the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Satellite images confirmed the presence of hot spots throughout Borneo, Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and several other places. Malaysia, Singapore and to a certain extent, Thailand and Brunei were particularly badly affected.

From Sumatra, monsoon winds blew the smoke eastward and hence creating negative environmental effects (externalities) on other Southeast Asian nations. Thick haze covered much of Southeast Asia for weeks and caused noticeable and widespread human health problems.

As of June 2007, eight countries have ratified the agreement.

Parties to the Agreement

Member State	Date of Ratification/Approval	Date of Deposit of Instrument of Ratification/Approval with the Secretary-General of ASEAN
Malaysia	December 3, 2002	February 18, 2003
Singapore	January 13, 2003	January 2003
Brunei	February 27, 2003	April 23, 2003
Myanmar	March 5, 2003	March 17, 2003
Vietnam	March 24, 2003	May 29, 2003
Thailand	September 10, 2003	September 26, 2003
Laos	December 19, 2004	July 13, 2005
Cambodia	April 24, 2006	November 9, 2006

See also

• 2005 Malaysian haze
• 2006 Southeast Asian haze
• Asian brown cloud

External links

• Documents on the agreement
• ASEAN Haze Online