Malaysia says Indonesia to open airspace for cloud seeding to tackle haze

Malaysia and Indonesia have agreed to open their airspace to each other for cloud seeding operations in a bid to combat the region-wide haze, Malaysia's environment minister has announced. The move is part of both countries' intensified efforts to tackle the haze caused by forest and land fires that have recently affected several provinces in Indonesia, leading to numerous school closures in Malaysia as well.

The National Disaster Management Agency and the Meteorological Department in Malaysia are currently finalizing schedules for cloud-seeding operations, which will be coordinated with the Indonesian military. Minister Arthur Joseph Kurup stated that Malaysia is also ready to assist Indonesia in fighting fires, with any specific requests to be brought to the cabinet for further action.

Both nations plan to ramp up their firefighting and fire prevention programs ahead of upcoming national holidays, including the Malaysia Day celebrations in Sarawak state on September 16. Sarawak, which shares a border with Indonesia's Kalimantan province, has been the most severely impacted by the haze. On Monday, six districts in Sarawak recorded unhealthy air pollution index (API) readings, while eight other districts across four Malaysian states also reported unhealthy API levels, according to data released by the environment department.