By Adrian Lim
KUCHING, Aug 14: The State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) has made preparations to address the haze situation and fight peat fires in Miri in the event of its occurrence.
SDMC chairman Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas said he had instructed all the Divisional Disaster Management Committee (DDMC) to be on the alert to tackle haze and open burning, especially in Miri.
“Fighting peat fire in Miri is like fighting Covid-19 also. We must be alert and know where there is smoke, we must quickly extinguish it. Otherwise, it will spread to other areas,” Uggah said during a press conference today when asked about the measures taken by SDMC to address the haze situation in Sarawak if it were to occur.
Uggah who is Deputy Chief Minister drew a comparison of fighting peat fire to the fight against Covid-19 infection in Sarawak.
He explained that fighting peat fire also requires quick action similar to the fast response and the efforts taken by the State Health Department in containing the Sentosa Hospital cluster from spreading out to other people or locations.
Uggah who is Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development Minister observed that sometimes in Miri, open burning occurs twice a year because there is a lot of peat soil there.
Thus, he urged the people in Miri to learn from past mistakes and not to conduct open burning.
On the issue of tackling haze between countries, Uggah who is Second Finance Minister noted that it is an international matter which is under the Federal Ministry of Environment and Water in Kuala Lumpur.
He explained that if haze occurred and the situation worsened in Sarawak, the state government would raise the issue to the federal ministry. —DayakDaily
