--- description: Seasonal pollution affecting Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia could "rank among the most severe events on record," says NASA scientist. title: The 2015 Asian Haze Could Be Among the Worst Ever image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltab3286de237942e0/698866d5f887dc67ede92b59/ap4236164961.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [southeast asia](/tag/southeast-asia/) ## southeast asia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Current Haze Over Southeast Asia Could Be Among the Worst Ever by [Nash Jenkins](/author/p-nash-jenkins/) ## Nash Jenkins Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 5, 2015 3:59 AM CUT  Pigeons perch on a power cable against Malaysia's landmark building, Petronas Twin Towers, shrouded with haze in Kuala Lumpur, on Oct. 4, 2015\. The haze is caused by the burning of forests in Indonesia's Sumatra and Borneo islands Pigeons perch on a power cable against Malaysia's landmark building, Petronas Twin Towers, shrouded with haze in Kuala Lumpur, on Oct. 4, 2015\. The haze is caused by the burning of forests in Indonesia's Sumatra and Borneo islandsJoshua Paul—AP by [Nash Jenkins](/author/p-nash-jenkins/) ## Nash Jenkins Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 5, 2015 3:59 AM CUT The huge swath of smoke and smog currently covering much of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore — a seasonal event known as the haze — could be among the worst in history according to a NASA scientist. “If the forecasts for a longer dry season hold, this suggests 2015 will rank among the most severe events on record,” Robert Field, of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, [told](http://www.smh.com.au/world/asian-haze-set-to-become-worst-on-record-20151004-gk18i9.html "undefined") the _Sydney Morning Herald_. The haze is caused annually by Indonesian palm-oil producers burning off forest growth in remote areas to clear land for planting. Cities across the region are shrouded in pollution for weeks as a result, with disruptions to business and transport. Tens if not hundreds of thousands of acute respiratory tract infections are recorded every year. On Sunday, Malaysia ordered its schools closed for the following two days, the _Herald_ reported. In the capital of Kuala Lumpur, where pollution-monitoring stations are reporting “very unhealthy” or nearly “hazardous” degrees of pollution, a typically gleaming skyline is shrouded in gray. The government has canceled soccer fixtures and a marathon with 30,000 registered participants; in Singapore, swimming officials shut down a final event in the sport’s World Cup last weekend, the _Herald_ said. Last week, [Indonesian President Joko Widodo told the BBC](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-34387979 "undefined") that his country was also a victim of the fire, a problem that he said would require years of mitigative effort before positive results emerged. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4060786/haze-singapore-indonesia-malaysia-pollution/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4060786/haze-singapore-indonesia-malaysia-pollution/"},"headline":"The Current Haze Over Southeast Asia Could Be Among the Worst Ever","datePublished":"2015-10-05T03:59:31.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T11:30:08.367Z","description":"The seasonal pollution has already caused weeks of disruption across the region","url":"https://time.com/4060786/haze-singapore-indonesia-malaysia-pollution/","keywords":["southeast asia","indonesia","Pollution","Smog","Malaysia","Singapore"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltab3286de237942e0/698866d5f887dc67ede92b59/ap4236164961.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Nash Jenkins","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/p-nash-jenkins/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltab3286de237942e0/698866d5f887dc67ede92b59/ap4236164961.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Malaysia Haze","caption":"Malaysia Haze","creditText":"Joshua Paul—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/southeast-asia/","name":"southeast asia"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4060786/haze-singapore-indonesia-malaysia-pollution/","name":"The Current Haze Over Southeast Asia Could Be Among the Worst Ever"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Know Right Now: Thick Haze Engulfs Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia","description":"A thick layer of smog from forest fires has settled over Singapore and parts of Malaysia and Indonesia.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xdzj36AS/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-09-16T06:28:38.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xdzj36AS.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4060786/haze-singapore-indonesia-malaysia-pollution/","duration":"PT1M5S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4060786/haze-singapore-indonesia-malaysia-pollution/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```