SINGAPORE — A group of volunteers could become the first to launch a civil suit using the Transboundary Haze Pollution Act against companies involved in starting fires in Indonesia.

The Haze Elimination Action Team (HEAT), led by Dr Ang Peng Hwa, a professor at Nanyang Technological University’s Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, is intending to use the Act to sue errant companies, and is searching for “an ideal plaintiff”, funding and lawyers to do the job pro bono. A handful from the group — which numbers over 800 — are putting together the legal requirements to take action, said Dr Ang.

The ideal plaintiff has to be someone who has incurred a sizeable bill — perhaps a few thousand dollars — from the haze, said Dr Ang. Plaintiffs can also be companies whose business has been affected by the haze, such as taxi firms or hotels.

“Of course we hope to win, but it’s also a name-and-shame campaign,” said Dr Ang. He added that once a Singapore-based company is identified, his group can call for a boycott of its products and “go after” entities that support the companies through loans or insurance.

HEAT is looking for a lawyer with experience in corporate forensics to “trace the ownership pattern” of the fires. Identifying the company will be a long process, however, as investigators have to document fire spots now and return two to three years later to see which companies are planting there, or benefiting from the field, said Dr Ang.

A civil suit would be part of a multi-pronged strategy needed to tackle errant companies, he said. “We need to put more effort into this, continue pushing and not give up. It is working ... The recalcitrant people are thinking about what’s at stake, taking into account our laws.”

Speaking at a press briefing on the haze situation, Minister for Environment and Water Resources Vivian Balakrishnan noted that the Act provides for both criminal and civil actions. While he has not been in contact with HEAT, he said he would like to meet the group.

“They are entitled to take action ... our demands for greater transparency and for sharing of information will facilitate their action,” he said. “In fact, it doesn’t only have to be that group, anyone who suffers losses as a result of (the haze) may be entitled to take action against errant companies pursuant to (the Act).”