Hours After a Hotspot Is Detected Are Critical; experts say haze control should shift from "firefighting" to "fire prevention."

Southeast Asian countries have been continuously affected by transboundary haze recently. Experts believe that regional countries can now monitor fire spots and predict high-risk weather in advance through satellite. The key issue in haze control is no longer whether fire spots can be detected, but whether rapid action can be taken within hours of their detection, and whether resources can be shifted from post-fire suppression to pre-fire prevention. Prof Euston Quah, Albert Winsemius Chair of Economics at NTU Singapore, said that from an economic perspective, it is more cost-effective to take preventative measures against fires.  As the director of the Economic Growth Centre, he pointed out that fire prevention costs mainly include monitoring, patrols, clearing land using machinery and manpower, and ensuring that small fires are detected and extinguished quickly. In contrast, the economic losses caused by transboundary haze are enormous. He cited a study he and his research partners published in 2021, which estimated that the haze in 2015 caused approximately S$1.83 billion in losses to Singapore.

 

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