THIRTY-EIGHT areas nationwide recorded “unhealthy” air pollutant index (API) readings this morning, with Johan Setia in Selangor back in the “very unhealthy” range, registering 212 as at 8am.

Sarawak, which last week bore the brunt of transboundary smoke caused by forest fires in Indonesia, showed the most dramatic improvement.

Sri Aman, located some 190km from the state capital and is where a forest fire is burning, is the only place in Sarawak with “unhealthy” air, with an API reading of 129 as at 9am.

Major cities and towns, including Kuching, Samarahan and Sibu, recorded “moderate” air quality, registering API figures of 75, 77 and 68, respectively, as at 8am.

The peninsula, meanwhile, saw a steady rise in API readings.

Putrajaya registered 167 as at 1am, hitting 177 at 9am. Shah Alam recorded an increase from 163 at 1am to 171 at 8am.

Other areas with worsening air quality were Nilai, which had an API reading of 163 at 1am and 191 at 9am, Alor Gajah (117 to 134), Malacca town (110 to 133), Segamat (139 to 155), Tangkak (115 to 130) and Paka (131 to 135).

Readings in northern states, like Penang and Kedah, showed a slight improvement.

An API reading of between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, “moderate” (51-100), “unhealthy” (101-200), “very unhealthy” (201-300) and “hazardous” (301 and above).

Schools that had been forced to close because of the smoke reopened today, as the API readings in all the affected areas, with the exception of Johan Setia, dropped below the 200 mark – used by the Education Ministry to determine closures – at 6pm yesterday.

In a statement yesterday, the Sarawak Education Department said schools statewide will reopen today as no area registered “very unhealthy” air as at 6pm. – September 23, 2019.