Singapore/Malaysia Haze update
June 25, 2013 – 8:05 am
The regional haze map released by Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) showed thick smoke/smog emanating from open burning for land clearing in Riau, Central Sumatra, Indonesia and wind blowing from southwest has brought haze to the central and southern parts of peninsular Malaysia. According to a statement issued by the Department of Environment (DOE), the rising of Air Pollutant Index (API) readings to “unhealthy” and “hazardous” levels was expected to persist until August.
As of yesterday (Monday, 24 June), the air quality remained at unhealthy levels in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Melaka and Negeri Sembilan with the API readings ranging from 157-198.
Based on the air quality index, reading of between 0-50 is categorized as good, 51-100 (moderate), 101-200 (unhealthy), 201-300 (very unhealthy) and 300 and above hazardous.
The Malaysian Government has declared a haze emergency at two places, namely the Muar and Ledang district in Johor , which are located over 184km and 174km respectively from Kuala Lumpur, as their API readings hit above 300 yesterday night.
Other than these localized areas, the rest of the country is haze-free. The air quality is moderately good in Penang, Langkawi, the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia as well as Sarawak and Sabah.
