PETALING JAYA: Air quality in nine areas of the country recorded Unhealthy to Very Unhealthy Air Pollutant Index (API) levels as of 8am, on Saturday (Sept 12), according to the Air Pollutant Index Management System (APIMS).
Sarawak has all nine affected locations. IPD Serian registered the worst air quality nationwide, climbing into the Very Unhealthy zone with a reading of 260.
Eight other locations across Sarawak fell into the Unhealthy range. Sri Aman and Samarahan both peaked near the upper threshold at 196, closely followed by Kuching at 192. Bintulu, Sarikei, and Samalaju logged similar levels at 153, 152, and 151 respectively, while Mukah recorded 118 and Sibu reached 105.
Across the rest of the nation, 45 locations reported Moderate air quality, while 13 areas—mostly across Northern and East Coast states such as Penang, Kedah, Perlis, Kelantan, Terengganu, and Perak—maintained Good readings.
Pasir Gudang, Johor, did not report a reading.
The Environment Department updates its API data hourly across 68 monitoring stations nationwide. Under the system, API values from 0 to 50 represent Good air quality, 51 to 100 Moderate, 101 to 200 Unhealthy, 201 to 300 Very Unhealthy, and anything above 300 Hazardous.
