All are affected by the haze — Abg Johari

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KUCHING: All industries are affected by the current haze whether directly or indirectly and the tourism sector is not spared.

Tourism Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg could not provide any statistics but said the tourism industry was definitely affected.

He said haze was quite a difficult situation which the state had been facing almost every year and hoped the countries affected would find solutions to solve the problem once and for all.

He said the haze was closely linked to burning of land for plantations but even then the problem would not be that serious if the situation was not over exploited.

He told reporters this when asked whether the haze had any effect on the tourist arrivals to the state after presenting minor rural project (MRP) fund of RM515,000 to 13 organisations at his office in Wisma Sultan Tengah here yesterday.

He said the haze also nearly forced the Sarawak Regatta 2015 scheduled for this weekend to be deferred to other dates.

“But all the 550 international paddlers said the event must go on as long as the air pollutant index (API) does not exceed 300.

“Of course, we will try to do our best to minimize the haze because it can be harmful especially for those with asthma and breathing problems,” he said.