Indonesia: Pontianak’s Haze Worsens
Tunggadewa Mattangkilang Jakarta Globe 20 Jun 12;
The annual haze that blankets parts of Kalimantan and Sumatra worsened over Pontianak on Monday, decreasing visibility for motorists and affecting the health of local residents.
Raihan, head of the city’s environment office, called on residents to stay alert while driving or walking. “People should always be careful in times like this,” he said.
Pontianak’s Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has so far recorded 45 hot spots spread over nine districts in West Kalimantan. In Sumatra, a total of 163 hot spots were detected on Sunday.
“The haze has not disrupted flights to and from the city yet because it doesn’t blanket the whole sky above the airport,” said Sutikno, a BMKG official at Pontianak’s Supadio International Airport.
Raihan said his office had yet to determine the source of the haze, adding that several teams have been deployed to various locations to investigate.
“We want to find out whether the haze is due to peat or forest burning by companies or residents as it is almost planting season. The hot spots can also come from fires set off by the long dry season,” he said.
Rain has not fallen in the province for several weeks now, causing fire to easily ignite, he added.
“However, we have called on residents and companies not to burn forests and advised people to use masks when they conduct outdoor activities,” Raihan said.
Eko, a 30-year-old Pontianak resident, said visibility in the city was only about 200 meters in the morning, and worsened toward the evening as the haze grew thicker.
With the haze becoming thicker over the past few weeks, he said, more and more residents have begun to suffer from upper respiratory tract infections.
“We’ve been dealing with this situation for two weeks now, and it’s getting worse every day with the lack of rain. Most of us now use masks whenever we’re outdoors,” Eko said.
Haze is an annual problem during the monsoon season from May to September in Kalimantan and Sumatra. Neighboring Singapore and Malaysia also suffer when winds blow the fumes over the Malacca Strait.
The Air Pollutant Index reached the unhealthy level of 127 in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday and visibility was described as poor by the Meteorological Department, Agence France-Presse reported.
With dry weather forecast for the next week, air quality is expected to deteriorate further.
Malaysia: Air quality improves despite hazy skies
The Star 20 Jun 12;
KUALA LUMPUR: Despite hazy skies, moderate air quality was recorded in most places nationwide, said the Department of Environment (DOE).
It said the Air Pollution Index (API) at 46 of 50 stations nationwide recorded moderate air quality while the remaining four registered good air quality as at 5pm yesterday.
The haze is still present in northern and central Sumatra coastline, the Malacca Straits and the west coast of northern states of peninsula Malaysia.
DOE said the major cause of the drop in air quality was the drifting haze from Sumatra.
Satellite images released by the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre showed hot spots in Sumatra had risen to 310 from 163 the previous day.
DOE has activated the National Haze Action Plan and the Open Burning Prevention Action Plan in all states as well as implementing its Standard Operating Procedures in monitoring the air quality nationwide.
Open burning has been banned in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
Members of the public are urged to report bush fire and open burning to the Fire and Rescue Department at 999 or DOE at 1-800-88-2727. — Bernama
Haze worsens in Penang
The Star 21 Jun 12;
GEORGE TOWN: The haze has worsened in Penang, with Seberang Jaya the only place in the country recording unhealthy air quality.
The Air Pollutant Index (API) reading in Seberang Jaya reached 105 as at 5pm yesterday from 101 earlier in the day. Tuesday’s reading was 86.
The API readings for the rest of the country yesterday were below 100.
In George Town, the API increased to 80 at 5pm yesterday from 78 at 7am. The level was 75 on Tuesday.
Readings in Prai increased to 90 at 5pm from 87 at 7am yesterday and less than 80 on Tuesday.
A Department of Environment (DOE) officer said the worsening haze in Penang was due to the change of wind direction which blew the haze northwards from the south.
There was also poor visibility in Penang yesterday. A check with the Malaysian Meteorological Department showed that visibility on the Penang mainland was only 2km from 8am to 4pm before it improved to 3km at 5pm.
Visibility at Bayan Lepas remained between 3km and 4km from 8am to 5pm.
The total number of hotspots in Sumatra increased to 341 places as recorded by the NOAA-18 satellite as at 3.43pm yesterday, compared to 267 hotspots on Tuesday.
The people are urged to report bush fires and open burning to the Fire and Rescue Department at 999 or DOE at 1-800-88- 2727.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said that the state government would cancel all its outdoor events for the next few days.
