KUALA LUMPUR: In efforts to bring relief to the worsening haze condition in the country, the Meteorological Department will be carrying out cloud seeding exercise at several areas.
The department’s atmospheric science and cloud seeding division director Maznorizan Mohamad said the operation began at 2pm today and will be carried out over Klang Valley, southern Perak, western Pahang, Negri Sembilan, Malacca, and southern and western Sarawak.
“We’re carrying out the cloud seeding exercise with the Royal Malaysian Air Force in two places, Subang and Kuching. One aircraft each will be based in Kuching and Subang airports.
“We’re planning to conduct this operation over a period of three days. However, it is subjected to weather condition and presence of appropriate clouds, Towering Cumulus and clouds with high water vapour content,” she told the New Straits Times today.
Maznorizan said each cloud seeding flight would cost between RM30,000 and RM40,000
She added that the success rate of each operation could reach up to 70 per cent in reducing haze in the affected areas.
The rising number of hotspots in Sumatra and Kalimantan, as well as the current hot and dry weather condition, had caused the haze situation to worsen in Sarawak and several states in the peninsula.
As of 1pm today, 34 areas recorded unhealthy readings, with Kemaman recording the highest Air Pollutant Index (API) of 189, followed by Balok Baru, Kuantan (188) and Ipoh (182).
Fifteen more areas recorded moderate readings, while Langkawi (33) and Kangar (26) recorded good API levels.
Due to the worsening haze enveloping the country, the Education Ministry had said schools in six haze affected areas would remain closed until further notice.
A total of 2,004 schools, involving 1.5 million pupils were closed today in Putrajaya, Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Malacca and Negri Sembilan.
An API of between 0 and 50 is considered good, 51 to 100 (medium), 101 to 200 (unhealthy), 201 to 300 (very unhealthy) and 300 and above (hazardous).
Members of the public can refer to MOE's portal at http://apims.doe.gov.my to find out the latest API readings.