Wednesday, July 2, 2008
SOME locals are of the opinion that not only is open burning a threat to the environment, it is also hazardous to health and called for measures to be taken.
A 31-year-old government officer commented that open burning could be dangerous as the fire could spread into a wider area. She conceded that she was not sure whether there was a law stating that open burning was permitted or not, nevertheless she felt outraged whenever people conducted the open burning at the side of the road. She feels that open burning pose threat to health especially to children as the burning of toxic materials can be hazardous.
Sue, a 48-year-old mother, said that she has long since stopped open burning because of the haze and also because three of her sons are asthmatic.
Another civilian said that he hated open burning as it caused breathing difficulties for him since he has asthma problem.
"People should stop open burning because of its effects to global warming,'" said Tony.
As a student who supports the preservation of the environment, he feels that people nowadays, especially the young ones, care less and less about the environmental effects open burning has on the atmosphere.
The 15-year-old said schools should take into account this problem and educate children about open burning and its implications. He urged the public, especially teenagers, to take a stance in abolishing open burning.
"Teenagers are the nation's future," he said. If we don't stop this practice now, it will continue to go on."
However there were some who were not totally adverse to this practice.
A local businessman stated that he doesn't mind open burning. "Where else is the rubbish going to go?" he asked.
He said that pollution "is not as bad in Brunei because we have the advantage of thick rainforests." He feels that the problem in Brunei was not as bad in comparison to some other countries.
Aerol, 26, said that he sometimes did open burning and so did his neighbours.
Another civil servant who spoke to The Brunei Times said that there should be appropriate places for burning waste. He said that the rubbish he burnt at home was mild compared to the burning of toxic waste.
A 65-year-old housewife, who also agreed to this said that this practice although wrong, should be in small doses. She added that even if the public wants to continue with open burning, they shouldn 't do it during the day asas to be considerate to the neighbours. Shealso suggested that the agricultural practises of slash burning should also be monitored by the relevant authorities.
A retiree in his mid sixties who still conducts open burnings outside his home, stated that one of the reasons that people are doing this was because they haven't seen any proper action taken.
He pointed out that if open burning is indeed a serious matter, then steps to prevent this should be taken.
A 27-year-old civilian was of the opinion that public mindset and habits needed to be changed.
"You can't just depend on the authorities to remind you every single time. If the public cares about the environment, then the public should be able to think for themselves," he said.
According to the Emergency Order of 1998, conducting open burning is a punishable offence. (SHR1) The Brunei Times
A 31-year-old government officer commented that open burning could be dangerous as the fire could spread into a wider area. She conceded that she was not sure whether there was a law stating that open burning was permitted or not, nevertheless she felt outraged whenever people conducted the open burning at the side of the road. She feels that open burning pose threat to health especially to children as the burning of toxic materials can be hazardous.
Sue, a 48-year-old mother, said that she has long since stopped open burning because of the haze and also because three of her sons are asthmatic.
Another civilian said that he hated open burning as it caused breathing difficulties for him since he has asthma problem.
"People should stop open burning because of its effects to global warming,'" said Tony.
As a student who supports the preservation of the environment, he feels that people nowadays, especially the young ones, care less and less about the environmental effects open burning has on the atmosphere.
The 15-year-old said schools should take into account this problem and educate children about open burning and its implications. He urged the public, especially teenagers, to take a stance in abolishing open burning.
"Teenagers are the nation's future," he said. If we don't stop this practice now, it will continue to go on."
However there were some who were not totally adverse to this practice.
A local businessman stated that he doesn't mind open burning. "Where else is the rubbish going to go?" he asked.
He said that pollution "is not as bad in Brunei because we have the advantage of thick rainforests." He feels that the problem in Brunei was not as bad in comparison to some other countries.
Aerol, 26, said that he sometimes did open burning and so did his neighbours.
Another civil servant who spoke to The Brunei Times said that there should be appropriate places for burning waste. He said that the rubbish he burnt at home was mild compared to the burning of toxic waste.
A 65-year-old housewife, who also agreed to this said that this practice although wrong, should be in small doses. She added that even if the public wants to continue with open burning, they shouldn 't do it during the day asas to be considerate to the neighbours. Shealso suggested that the agricultural practises of slash burning should also be monitored by the relevant authorities.
A retiree in his mid sixties who still conducts open burnings outside his home, stated that one of the reasons that people are doing this was because they haven't seen any proper action taken.
He pointed out that if open burning is indeed a serious matter, then steps to prevent this should be taken.
A 27-year-old civilian was of the opinion that public mindset and habits needed to be changed.
"You can't just depend on the authorities to remind you every single time. If the public cares about the environment, then the public should be able to think for themselves," he said.
According to the Emergency Order of 1998, conducting open burning is a punishable offence. (SHR1) The Brunei Times