Indonesia says capital pollution spike due to weather and vehicles

Jakarta topped IQAir's live ranking of air pollution in major cities at least once every day from Aug 7 to Aug 10. - PHOTO: EPA-EFE via The Straits Times/ANN

JAKARTA (AFP): Indonesia's government on Friday night blamed a pollution spike in traffic-clogged capital Jakarta on weather patterns and vehicle emissions after the city topped global rankings four days this week.

Jakarta and its surrounds form a megalopolis of about 30 million people, and its airborne concentration of the tiny particles known as PM2.5 has outpaced other heavily polluted cities such as Riyadh, Doha and Lahore of late.