Singapore, Indonesia to set up joint task force to tackle firms linked to forest fires

Southeast Asia neighbours Singapore and Indonesia are looking into establishing a joint task force to hold companies accountable for forest fires which have caused transboundary haze.

The two countries will also set up a hotline to handle any differences in bilateral issues, according to Indonesia Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Nasir.

These initiatives were announced at a joint press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday (Oct 27) following a meeting between Singapore Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan and his Indonesian counterpart.

“Smoke can cross borders, so can money. That is why we must follow the money trail these companies have left behind,” Arrmanatha said, adding that Singapore has offered to share data on companies linked to the fires.

The Indonesian foreign minister said that the joint task will link information sharing, financial intelligence, and cross-border evidence gathering, including asset recovery where possible.

"No border should shield those who profit from burning our forests," Arrmanatha stated.

Agreeing with his counterpart, Dr Balakrishnan reiterated that Singapore will use every legal and regulatory measure available to stop future violations by companies.

“We are in effect putting all the companies on notice that the joint task force will ensure that there is a very close coordination of actions and sharing of information between Indonesia and Singapore," Dr Balakrishnan said, adding that he expects the deterrence impact of the joint task force to make a difference.

Turning to bilateral relations, Arrmanatha acknowledged that there will be differences "from time to time", and these have to be addressed in an "efficient manner".

"We agreed to strengthen our channel of communication through a ministerial and senior officials' level hotline," he said.

Actions taken by Singapore

Last week, Singapore's National Environment Agency (NEA) issued notices to 10 Singapore-registered companies in the palm oil and forestry sectors as part of its probe into transboundary haze pollution linked to Indonesia .

The notices were issued under Section 10 of Singapore's Transboundary Haze Pollution Act (THPA).

The notices sought details of their corporate links in Singapore and Indonesia, the locations of their land concessions in Indonesia, and fire prevention and firefighting measures undertaken by the companies or their associated businesses during the current dry season.

On Oct 16 and Oct 19, NEA issued a total of 10 Preventive Measure Notices (PMNs) under Section 9 of the THPA to Indonesian companies over fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan.

Under the PMNs, the companies must deploy firefighting personnel to extinguish fires or prevent them from spreading, and stop or refrain from burning activities on land they own or occupy.

They must also submit action plans to NEA to extinguish fires and prevent their spread or recurrence.

On Tuesday, Singapore's Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said Singapore is studying ways to tighten its existing anti-haze legislation and will introduce new laws where necessary.

"The objective is to address enforcement gaps, strengthen corporate accountability, and enhance our ability to investigate and take decisive action against those responsible for transboundary haze," she said, adding that the Government is also prepared to use a wider range of legal, regulatory and economic measures.

The minister stressed that companies must be responsible for the environmental impact of their operations and supply chains.

Piped natural gas cuts

Meanwhile, Indonesia has cut natural gas exports to Singapore , with the reduction amounting to less than two per cent of the city state's total daily gas demand.

The reduction, announced by Indonesian authorities on Oct 24, comes days after Indonesia's Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said on Oct 21 that Indonesia would consider reviewing energy export agreements to prioritise domestic demand.

A day later, Bahlil doubled-down on his comments during the inauguration of a gas facility, saying he is similarly prepared to evaluate energy exports with countries deemed "uncooperative and disrespectful".

东南亚邻国新加坡和印度尼西亚正在考虑成立一个联合工作组，追究造成跨境烟霾的森林火灾相关公司的责任。

据印尼外交部长阿尔马纳塔·纳西尔称，两国还将设立一条热线，以处理双边问题上的任何分歧。

这些举措是在新加坡外交部长维文·巴拉克里希南博士与印尼外交部长于周二（10月27日）在雅加达举行的联合新闻发布会上宣布的。

“烟雾可以跨越国界，资金也可以。这就是为什么我们必须追踪这些公司留下的资金流向，”阿曼纳塔说道，并补充说新加坡已表示愿意分享与火灾相关的公司数据。

印尼外交部长表示，这项联合任务将把信息共享、金融情报和跨境证据收集联系起来，包括在可能的情况下追回资产。

“任何边界都不应该保护那些从焚烧我们的森林中获利的人，”阿曼纳塔说道。

巴拉克里希南博士同意对方的观点，并重申新加坡将利用一切可用的法律和监管措施来阻止公司未来的违规行为。

巴拉克里希南博士表示：“我们实际上是在通知所有公司，联合工作组将确保印尼和新加坡之间密切协调行动和信息共享。”他还补充说，他预计联合工作组的威慑作用将会产生影响。

谈到双边关系，阿尔马纳塔承认“不时”会出现分歧，这些分歧必须以“有效的方式”解决。

他说：“我们同意通过部长级和高级官员级别的热线加强沟通渠道。”

新加坡采取的行动

上周，新加坡国家环境局 (NEA) 向 10 家在新加坡注册的棕榈油和林业公司发出通知，作为其对与印度尼西亚有关的跨境雾霾污染调查的一部分。

这些通知是根据新加坡《跨境烟霾污染法》（THPA）第 10 条发出的。

通知要求提供这些公司在新加坡和印度尼西亚的企业联系详情、在印度尼西亚的土地特许权位置，以及这些公司或其关联企业在当前旱季采取的防火和灭火措施。

10 月 16 日和 10 月 19 日，国家环境局 (NEA) 根据《泰国水资源保护法》(THPA) 第 9 条，就苏门答腊岛和加里曼丹岛发生的火灾，向印尼公司共发出 10 份预防措施通知 (PMN)。

根据 PMN，公司必须部署消防人员扑灭火灾或防止火势蔓延，并停止或避免在其拥有或占用的土地上进行燃烧活动。

他们还必须向国家环境局提交灭火行动计划，防止火灾蔓延或再次发生。

周二，新加坡永续发展与环境部长傅海燕表示，新加坡正在研究如何加强现有的反雾霾立法，并将在必要时出台新的法律。

“我们的目标是弥补执法漏洞，加强企业问责制，并提高我们调查和对跨境烟霾责任人采取果断行动的能力，”她说道，并补充说，政府也准备采取更广泛的法律、监管和经济措施。

部长强调，企业必须对其运营和供应链对环境的影响负责。

管道天然气供应中断

与此同时，印尼削减了对新加坡的天然气出口，减量幅度不到新加坡每日天然气总需求的2%。

印尼当局于 10 月 24 日宣布了这一减产决定。此前几天，印尼能源和矿产资源部长巴赫利尔·拉哈达利亚于 10 月 21 日表示，印尼将考虑重新审视能源出口协议，以优先满足国内需求。

一天后，巴赫利尔在天然气设施落成典礼上再次重申了他的言论，称他同样准备评估与那些被认为“不合作和不尊重”的国家之间的能源出口。