[Dioxin-l] Open Burning Restrictions in Malaysia

[Vergil Bushnell]

New Straits Times (Malaysia) 

                                                January 11, 2000 

SECTION: Pg. 1 

LENGTH: 669 words 

HEADLINE: New law on open burning (HL) 

BYLINE: By Esther Tan 

DATELINE: Kuala Lumpur 

BODY: 
   KUALA LUMPUR, Mon. - Those planning to conduct open burning to dispose
of 
infected crops or carcasses of diseased animals must inform the Department 
of Environment and get approval from relevant agencies under new 
legislation which will be enforced next month. 

They must adhere to a set of conditions or face a fine of up to RM2,000 
under the new Environmental Quality (Prescribed Activities)(Open Burning) 
Order which will be gazetted by the end of next month. 

They are also liable to a maximum fine of RM500,000 or up to five years' 
jail or both under the Environmental Quality Act if their case is taken to 
court. 

DOE director-general Rosnani Ibarahim told the New Straits Times that 
the draft of the Order, drawn up following the severe haze in 1998, has 
been finalised and would be submitted to the Cabinet after the Hari Raya 
holidays. 

"We plan to gazette and enforce the Order by the end of next month," she 
said. 

The Order is made possible with the 1998 amendments to the Environmental 
Quality Act (EQA) which also saw the introduction of stiffer penalties for 
open burning. 

At present, some of the conditions under the Order are being implemented 
as mere guidelines. Once gazetted, the conditions will have legal force. 

Under the Order, open burning will only be allowed for prescribed 
activities such as religious practices, training and research activities, 
disease control, and agricultural practices which involve the burning of 
sugar cane leaves and padi stalks, and shifting cultivation. 

The existing Environmental Quality (Clean Air) Regulations 1978, allow 
open burning for these activities. The difference is that the DOE does not 
need to be informed beforehand and there are no stringent conditions to 
adhere to. 

Rosnani said the Order will make it a requirement for those wishing to 
carry out open burning for these exempted activities to provide prior 
notification to the DOE. 

Those wanting to dispose of infected crops and carcasses of diseased 
animals or poultry for disease and pest control must get approval from the 
departments of Agriculture and Veterinary Services. 

One of the conditions is that burning of carcasses can only be carried 
out in areas where other alternatives such as incinerators are not 
available. The burning must be conducted in designated areas determined by 
the DOE. 

Open burning activities must cease if the Air Pollutant Index breaches 
100. All open burning must also be supervised. 

Burning of garden refuse on the premises of private residences will 
continue to be allowed under the Order provided it is done between 8am and 
6pm. Private residents are not required to inform the DOE. 

"Under the Order, we will no longer issue written permission for open 
burning such as for land-clearing by plantations. This means open burning 
for any other activities other than the prescribed activities will no 
longer be allowed," said Rosnani. 

The Order will remove ambiguities which obstruct effective enforcement 
as the prescribed list is very specific on types of activities. 

For instance, Rosnani said the Order clearly defined the types of 
agricultural practices where open burning is allowed. 

Essentially, the exemption is given to smallholders and those carrying 
out traditional agricultural practices as they cannot afford zero-burning 
technology. 

Big plantation companies have no excuse. The plantation sector is lumped 
under agricultural practices under the current regulations. 

"Under normal circumstances, they will no longer be allowed to carry out 
open burning because they are capable of zero-burning techniques," said 
Rosnani. 

The Order is the second stage of the DOE's efforts to ensure stringent 
enforcement to curb local sources of haze. It had amended the EQA to raise 
the maximum fine from RM100,000 to RM500,000 for open burning. It also 
made land owners responsible for fires on their land unless they could 
prove that the open burning occurred outside of their control. 

Vergil Bushnell
Multinationals Resource Center

email: vbushnell@essential.org
phone: 202.387.8030
address: PO Box 19405, Washington DC 20036