KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 31 — Malaysia’s air quality deteriorated sharply today, with four areas in Sarawak recording hazardous pollution levels as transboundary haze affected parts of the country amid hundreds of hotspots in Kalimantan and Sumatra.
Serian recorded the worst Air Pollutant Index (API) reading at 475 as of 9am, followed by Samarahan at 334, Sri Aman at 330 and Kuching at 324, according to a statement by the Department of Environment (DOE).
Another three areas in Sarawak — Sarikei, Sibu and Mukah — recorded very unhealthy air quality, with readings of 271, 219 and 214 respectively.
Fourteen locations across Sarawak, Kedah, Penang, Labuan, Sabah and Perak were meanwhile classified as unhealthy, underscoring the wider deterioration in air quality beyond Sarawak.
The DOE said air quality had worsened in parts of the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak, Sabah and Labuan, influenced by haze smoke moving in from several directions.
Citing an August 30 report by the Singapore-based Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC), the department said satellite images showed 324 hotspots in Kalimantan and another 42 in Sumatra.
Only two hotspots were detected in Malaysia — one each in Perak and Sarawak.
The ASMC’s regional haze map showed dry conditions across much of the southern Asean region, while scattered to widespread hotspots were detected in Kalimantan and Sumatra.
Moderate to dense transboundary smoke was observed over West and Central Kalimantan, Brunei, and western and central Sarawak, while moderate smoke from hotspot clusters in North Kalimantan was seen moving into southern Sabah.
Moderate to dense smoke was also observed coming from hotspot clusters across much of Kalimantan and central and southern Sumatra.
The worsening regional situation has prompted the Asean Secretariat to activate Alert Level 3 for the southern Asean region, effective from August 27, following an increase in hotspot activity and the wider spread of haze.
Under Malaysia’s National Haze Action Plan, outdoor classroom activities must be suspended once the API exceeds 100, while schools, kindergartens and childcare centres are to close immediately when readings exceed 200.
Disaster management committees may also be activated when the API remains above 150 for more than 24 hours, while cloud-seeding operations can be carried out subject to suitable weather and cloud conditions.
The DOE said it would continue monitoring air quality, hotspots, weather conditions and the development of transboundary haze nationwide, while stepping up enforcement against open burning in areas considered at risk.
The department also reminded the public not to carry out open burning, warning that under amendments to the Environmental Quality Act, offenders can face fines of between RM25,000 and RM1 million, imprisonment of up to five years, or both.
