Malaysia: API in Muar spikes at 746

Desiree Tresa Gasper The Star 23 Jun 13;

Muar town at API of 453 on Saturday. Muar town at API of 453 on Saturday.

JOHOR BARU: The air pollutant index (API) in Muar has spiked to 746 as of 7.00am, which is more than twice the standard hazardous levels according to the Department of Environment website on Sunday.

Johor Health Department director Dr Mohd Khairi Yakub said that health officials including ambulances were on standby in case of any emergency due to the haze.

"We have no absentees in Muar today and we are ready for any incident including accidents which may occur due to poor visibility on the roads.

"In the meantime, I advise all residents to stay indoors, no excuses," he said when contacted on Sunday.

He added that heading outdoors even with facemasks on was not advisable.

According to the Department of Environment (DOE), any API reading above 301 is considered hazardous.

The last reading as of 4pm on Saturday showed that Muar had an API of 453.

All other areas in Johor also recorded API readings above the unhealthy level.

This includes Kota Tinggi at 137, Pasir Gudang at 127 and Larkin Lama at 117.

Johor API hits 453
The Star 23 Jun 13;

PETALING JAYA: The Air Pollutant Index (API) in Muar, Johor shot up to 453 by 4pm yesterday, falling again into the “hazardous” category, reported Bernama.

It had been at the “very unhealthy” level with a reading of 373 earlier at 11am.

Muar Natural Disaster (air pollution and haze) chairman Abdul Rahman Mohamed Dewam said the API reading had been on a steady increase there throughout the day.

Malaysia declares emergency as Indonesia smoke pollution thickens
Reuters Yahoo News 23 Jun 13;

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia declared a state of emergency in two parts of the southern state of Johor on Sunday as smoke from land-clearing fires in Indonesia pushed air pollution above the level considered hazardous.

The illegal burning of forests and other land on Indonesia's Sumatra island, to the west of peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, to clear space for palm oil plantations is a chronic problem during the June-September dry season.

The "haze" caused by fires in Riau province on Sumatra has also shrouded neighboring Singapore but air quality in the city state improved over the weekend after reaching hazardous levels there.

"Prime Minister Najib Razak has agreed to declare emergency status in Muar and Ledang with immediate effect," Malaysian Natural Resources and Environment Minister G. Palanivel said in a Facebook post.

Palanivel said the air pollution index in the two districts had exceeded 750. A reading above 300 indicates that air pollution is hazardous.

Neither Palanivel nor the prime minister's office could be reached for comment.

A spokesman at the Johor state operations center told Reuters that it was awaiting orders from the National Security Council and that residents in the affected areas should stay indoors.

Indonesian officials have deflected blame by suggesting companies based in Malaysia and Singapore may be partly responsible. Malaysia-listed Sime Darby and Singapore's Wilmar Group both deny the charge.

(Reporting by Siva Sithraputhran; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Penang bans open-air burning
Phuah Ken Lin and Sharifah Mahsinah Abdullah New Straits Times 23 Jun 13;

PRECAUTIONARY MOVES: Other states, too, are taking preemptive measures following worsening haze in Johor and Malacca

GEORGE TOWN: OPEN-AIR burning has been banned as a preemptive effort by the state government in view of the haze situation.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said there was a need to take precautionary measure because of the worsening pollution in Johor and Malacca.

"The ban on open-air burning is intended to alert the public not to aggravate the air quality. We have to act early to let the people in Penang know the severity of the haze situation," he said after launching the women brigade team, comprising 314 volunteers, to assist in improving the welfare of the needy.

In Kota Baru, all staff at hospitals and health clinics were on alert to attend to those suffering from chronic respiratory illnesses, such as asthma, as a result of the haze.

State Health director Datuk Dr Ahmad Razin Ahmad Maher said all hospitals and clinics had been told to monitor the situation.

"It is important to take early preventive steps, even though Kelantan has yet to be hit by haze and the Air Pollutant Index reading is still normal."

Air quality in Malaysia from hazardous to good
Straits Times 23 Jun 13;

Kuala Lumpur - The Air Pollutant Index (API) in Muar, Johor, yesterday was in the hazardous zone with a high reading of 453 at 4pm.

The air quality deteriorated from the 373 reading recorded earlier at 11am.

According to the Department of Environment's (DOE's) website, unhealthy air quality was also recorded in 10 areas across Malaysia, including Kota Tinggi, which had an API reading of 189, Larkin Lama (167), Pasir Gudang (187), Bandaraya Melaka (188) and Bukit Rambai (170).

Thirty-nine other areas registered moderate API readings, while two areas had good air quality, Bernama news agency reported.

A reading of between 0 and 50 is categorised as good, 51 and 100 (moderate), 101 and 200 (unhealthy), 201 and 300 (very unhealthy) and 300 and above hazardous.

The DOE website did not provide an API reading for Muar at 5pm.

Air quality in the capital Kuala Lumpur and in several surrounding areas was in the "unhealthy" zone, Reuters reported.

In a message on Twitter, Prime Minister Najib Razak said Malaysia is committed to addressing the haze problem and that the government had offered cloud seeding services to Indonesia, the New Straits Times reported.

He hoped that with the initiative the haze problem would end fast.

Last Friday, Malaysia's Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri G. Palanivel said the country would offer cloud seeding services to the Indonesian government, when he attends a meeting with his Indonesian counterpart in Jakarta on Wednesday.