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JAKARTA - Smoky haze from forest and brush fires blanketed parts of the Indonesian islands of Borneo and Sumatra Saturday, disrupting flights in western Borneo island, officials said. At least five flights in Pontianak city in West Kalimantan province were delayed early Saturday by smoke from fires lit to clear new plantation land, said Kosasi Munir, the city's airport operational chief. Morning visibility was only at 50 to 300 metres (165 to 990 feet), Munir said.
A meteorology official in Palangkaraya, the capital of neighbouring Central Kalimantan province, warned that forest and brush fires creating the haze could worsen as the rainy season is not expected before September. "Compared to the previous years, land clearing is slightly down but the dry spell will not end before September so things are going to get worse, although it won't be as bad as four years ago," said Ferdy Purwana of the city's meteorology station.
Sumatra and Borneo islands - which border Singapore and Malaysia - are the areas usually hardest hit by the choking haze, an annual dry-season hazard in parts of Indonesia. Officials blame fires set by large forest and plantation concession-holders, as well as by small farmers, to clear land for cultivation. The practice is illegal but officials find it difficult to enforce the law.
Indonesian Environment Minister Nabiel Makarim said last week the haze was partially caused by illegal logging and urged Malaysia to assist Jakarta in stemming the smuggling of stolen timber into the country. In 1997 and to a lesser extent in 1998, haze from forest fires in Indonesia enveloped parts of Southeast Asia for months, causing serious health problems and traffic hazards.
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