The Sixth Meeting of the ASEAN Senior Officials on the Environment (ASOEN) held in Bali, Indonesia on 20-22 September 1995 agreed to establish a Haze Technical Task Force to operationalise and implement the measures recommended in the ASEAN Cooperation Plan on Transboundery Pollution relating to atmospheric pollution, including the following tasks :

(a). demarcate critical areas of land and forest fires;

(b) identify the critical periods for occurence of smoke haze;

(c) develop a system for National Focal Points to alert ASOEN on impending haze;

(d) facilitate proper collection and effective dissemination of meteorological data, including sateffite photographs On "hotspots' by the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) and the countries concemed;

(e) develop proper monitoring system on actions taken on the ground to fight and contain land and forest fires; and

(f) monitor and report on status of projects relating to the management and control of trasboundary haze pollution involving international organisations and developed countries.

The Haze Technical Task Force will produce a manual for implementing measures to mitigate and control land and forest fires which lead to the manifestation of smoke haze in the region. It will be chaired by Indonesia and comprise senior officials from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The Task Force met for the first time in Jakarta, Indonesia on 16- 17 October 1995.