PETALING JAYA: Haze conditions remained poor in several areas, with 13 recording unhealthy air quality and four recording hazardous levels, including in northern states as well as Sabah and Sarawak yesterday.
According to the Air Pollutant Index Management System (APIMS), three areas in Sarawak recorded a hazardous Air Pollutant Index (API) as of 8pm yesterday, namely Serian at 433, followed by Kuching at 381, Samarahan at 352 and Sri Aman at 339.
Five other areas in Sarawak recorded unhealthy readings, with Bintulu recording the highest at 184, followed by ILP Miri and Miri both at 179, Kapit at 170 and Limbang at 162.
Other areas recording unhealthy readings included Labuan at 166.
In Sabah, Kota Kinabalu recorded 156, followed by Kimanis (154) and Keningau (140), while Sungai Petani in Kedah recorded 153.
In Penang, Seberang Perai recorded 151, followed by Seberang Jaya (136) and Minden (118).
Department of Environment (DOE) deputy director-general (Development) Azuri Azizah Saedon said a total of 368 hotspots were detected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on Sunday (Aug 30), including two in Malaysia.
These comprised one each in Perak and Sarawak, 324 in Kalimantan and 42 in Sumatra, she said.
She also said dry conditions across much of southern Asean had contributed to widespread hotspots in Kalimantan and Sumatra, with smoke from the fires drifting across borders into parts of Malaysia.
“Moderate to dense transboundary smoke haze was observed over West and Central Kalimantan, as well as Brunei and the western and central parts of Sarawak.
“Moderate transboundary smoke haze from clusters of hotspots in North Kalimantan was also observed moving into southern Sabah,” she said.
Meanwhile, Selangor recorded moderate readings, with Johan Setia at 75, followed by Shah Alam (67), Kuala Selangor (64), Petaling Jaya (63), and Klang and Banting at 61 each.
Other areas in the Klang Valley included Batu Muda and Putrajaya, which recorded 73, and Cheras (63).
In Perak, Tasek Ipoh recorded 75, followed by Seri Manjung (74), Tanjung Malim (73) and Pegoh Ipoh (70).
In Johor, Tangkak recorded 71, followed by Pasir Gudang (69), Larkin (67), Kota Tinggi (62), Batu Pahat (61), Pengerang (58), Kluang (55) and Segamat (53).
Rompin in Pahang and Kangar in Perlis recorded good readings, at 48 and 40, respectively.
Azuri Azizah said the DOE had intensified enforcement and daily patrols in areas prone to open burning, while closely monitoring air quality nationwide.
The API classifies readings of 0-50 as good, 51-100 as moderate, 101-200 as unhealthy, 201-300 as very unhealthy and above 300 as hazardous.
If API readings exceed 150 for more than 24 hours, the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) may activate the Disaster Management Committee.
