Palm oil companies are suspected of illegally starting widespread forest fires in Indonesia in order to clear land for palm oil plantations, Indonesian officials say. The fires have caused record levels of hazardous smog in neighboring Singapore since Wednesday.
Reuters U.K. reported Friday that the destructive blazes on the island of Sumatra had been “deliberately set.” Indonesian officials said eight companies were responsible for the fires, and more are likely to be named on Saturday, per Reuters.
“Since the fires are happening mostly on plantation lands, we believe there are plantation companies involved,” Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said, according to The Times of India. “The president has already put together a team to investigate who owns the plantations.”
The paper notes that the illegal burning of forests generally happens from June to September each year — during Indonesia’s dry season.
“This recent smog is just the most visible part of the serious deforestation and human rights crisis sweeping Indonesia,” Laurel Sutherlin of the Rainforest Action Network, a San Francisco-based environmental organization, told The Huffington Post via email Friday. “Widespread, illegal burning to clear rainforests and peatlands for palm oil and pulp and paper plantation expansion is unfortunately a well-established yearly ritual in Sumatra.”
Complicating matters, some big palm oil companies that operate in Indonesia are based in Singapore or have Singaporean investors. According to a BBC report, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that if any Singaporean companies, or companies with a presence in Singapore, played a part in the fires, they would be held responsible.
Asia Pacific Resources International, which has palm oil operations on Sumatra and offices in a number of countries including Singapore, was one of the companies named by Indonesian officials in connection with the fires. However, the company says on its website that it has had a “no-burn policy” in place since 1994.
A staple for cooking throughout Southeast Asia and elsewhere, palm oil is the single largest traded vegetable oil commodity in the world, and global demand is rising rapidly, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says. The oil is increasingly used in the manufacture of cosmetics, soaps, pharmaceuticals and industrial products. It is also used to make biodiesel fuel.
Indonesia produces more palm oil than anywhere else in the world, according to the Department of Agriculture.
The slash-and-burn methods apparently being used in the Indonesian jungle have caused the worst smog in Singapore’s history. The Pollutant Standards Index reached a high of 401 in the city-state at noon on Friday, according to The Independent. A measurement over 400 is said to be life-threatening to sick and elderly people, the paper notes.
Singapore’s prime minister said Thursday that the smog could last for weeks or more.
Map courtesy of the World Resources Institute.
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The Singapore skyline is nearly completely covered in smoke haze on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
People wearing face masks walk on the street in Singapore on June 21, 2013. Singapore’s smog index hit the critical 400 level on June 21, making it potentially life-threatening to the ill and elderly people, according to a government monitoring site. AFP PHOTO/Roslan Rahman
A crow flies the setting sun in Singapore on June 21, 2013. Severe smog over Singapore caused by forest fires in Indonesia could hurt the city-state’s economy if it persists for weeks, economists said on June 21, as the pollution index hit new record levels. AFP PHOTO/Roslan Rahman
A general view shows the Singapore river as the haze index dropped to 143 PSI at 1700 hours local time in Singapore on June 21, 2013. The severe smog over Singapore caused by forest fires in Indonesia could hurt the city-state’s economy if it persists for weeks, economists said on June 21 as the pollution index hit new record levels. AFP PHOTO / Roslan Rahman
People wearing face masks walk on the street in Singapore on June 21, 2013. Singapore’s smog index hit the critical 400 level on June 21, making it potentially life-threatening to the ill and elderly people, according to a government monitoring site. AFP PHOTO/Roslan Rahman
The Singapore skyline is completely covered in smoke haze on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
Marina Bay Sands hotel is completely covered in smoke haze as tourists try to take pictures on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
A man crosses an overpass amongst heavy smoke haze in Chinatown on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
Tourists walk to towards the haze covered Super Trees at Gardens By the Bay on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
The Singapore ArtScience Museum and Marina Bay Sands Hotel are seen covered by thick smoke haze on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
The Merlion is the only visible landmark on the bay as the Singapore skyline is completely covered in smoke haze on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
A boat passes in front of the haze covered Singapore skyline on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
Construction workers hang on the outside of a building covered in smoke haze on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
The Merlion stands as the only visible part of the Singapore Skyline as it is shrouded in thick smoke haze on June 21, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 400 at 11am. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
A general view of the causeway from Singapore to Johor Bahru (background) is obscured by haze on June 21, 2013. Singapore’s smog index hit the critical 400 level on June 21, making it potentially life-threatening to the ill and elderly people, according to a government monitoring site. AFP PHOTO / ROSLAN RAHMAN
A SMRT train travels through the haze in Singapore on June 21, 2013. Singapore’s smog index hit the critical 400 level on June 21, making it potentially life-threatening to the ill and elderly people, according to a government monitoring site. AFP PHOTO / ROSLAN RAHMAN
This photo taken on June 20, 2013 shows a pregnant woman with a face mask walking on the street in Singapore. Singapore’s smog index hit the critical 400 level on June 21, making it potentially life-threatening to the ill and elderly people, according to a government monitoring site. AFP PHOTO/Roslan Rahman
SINGAPORE – JUNE 20: Friends mingle at the Marina Bay Waterfront as the city skyline is filled with smog on June 20, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 371 at 1pm. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)
SINGAPORE – JUNE 20: A couple takes a pre-wedding photographs as the city skyline is filled with smog at the Marina Bay Waterfront on June 20, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 371 at 1pm. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)
SINGAPORE – JUNE 20: A man takes photographs of the city skyline on June 20, 2013 in Singapore. The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) rose to the highest level on record reaching 371 at 1pm. The haze is created by deliberate slash-and-burn forest fires started by companies in neighbouring Sumatra. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)
Indonesia Fires, Singapore Smog Likely Caused By Palm Oil Companies
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