A TOTAL of 17 areas nationwide recorded unhealthy Air Pollution Index (API) readings as of 7pm today.

This was an increase from yesterday when only four areas in Johor and Negri Sembilan did so.

An update on the Malaysian Air Pollution Index Management System (APIMS) website revealed that Nilai in Negri Sembilan and Bukit Rambai in Malacca recorded the highest API readings of 161 and 159 respectively. 

Other areas with unhealthy API readings include Larkin (152), Batu Pahat (161), Tangkak (154), Segamat (153), Malacca City (153), Alor Gajah (154), Port Dickson (154), Seremban (143), Banting (152), Putrajaya (151), Klang (125), Cheras (155), Shah Alam (101), Rompin (116), Indera Mahkota (102), Kemaman (110), and Paka (112).

APIMS classifies API readings between 0 and 50 as good; 51 and 100, moderate; 101 to 200, unhealthy; 201 to 300, very unhealthy, and above 300 as hazardous.

Meanwhile, 52 monitoring stations across the country recorded moderate API levels and only three areas had good API readings. 

The areas with good API readings were Kimanis (28) and Keningau (37) in Sabah and Sibu (49) in Sarawak. 

Earlier today, Indonesia President Joko Widodo warned that smoke from forest and land fires there had the potential to spread widely. 

He also ordered top military and police officers as well as regional governments to take immediate action to overcome the problem. 

“Indeed, every fire produces smoke that can spread widely if it is carried by the wind,” said the leader, popularly known as Jokowi. 

“Every point of fire, no matter how small, must be controlled to prevent it from spreading,” he said in a statement on the rise in air pollution in neighbouring countries following the fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan. 

The peak of the dry season in Indonesia is expected to occur this month following the increase in hot spots from August with several regions, including Java, not receiving rain for the past three months. 

Malaysia is ready to work with Indonesia to deal with the forest and land fires, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry said. 

The offer was made in an official letter sent by Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad to his Indonesian counterpart Siti Nurbaya Bakar. 

The Malaysian consulate in Pontianak donated six water pumps to the government of West Kalimantan in August for the prevention and control of forest and land fires. 

In an official statement last Monday, Siti Nurbaya said Malaysia’s complaint about Indonesia’s haze was inaccurate. 

“We have been monitoring the situation, and no cross-border haze has reached Malaysia,” she said. – October 8, 2023.