KUALA LUMPUR: Air quality in the country saw an improvement today, with 15 areas having the Air Pollutant Index (API) at moderate level, as compared to 22 areas on Saturday.
Kg. Air Putih, Taiping had the highest API reading of 79 on Saturday, whereas as of 3pm today, Port Klang and Batu Muda recorded the highest API reading of 66.
This is followed by Seberang Jaya 2, Perai (63), Jalan Tasek (61), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang (61), Perai (60), Alor Setar (59), Kuala Terengganu (58), Kuching (57), SK Jalan Pegoh, Ipoh (56), Labuan (55), Kuala Selangor (53) and Petaling Jaya (52).
An API reading of between zero and 50 indicates good air quality; between 51 and 100, moderate; between 101 and 200, unhealthy; between 201 and 300, very unhealthy and over 301, hazardous.
Meanwhile, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri G. Palanivel said a total of 4,417 cases of open burning have been detected since January to Aug 2 this year.
He said most of the cases involved agricultural lands, totaling to 1,436 cases, followed by forest (899 cases), construction sites (137 cases), landfills (77 cases), industrial areas (34 cases), and other open burning (819 cases).
“A total of 315 cases of open burning were fined, while 101 cases were issued warning notices, as per the Environmental Quality (Amendment) Act 2012,” he said in a statement on his Facebook page, today.
Palanivel added that DOE had opened investigation papers on 45 cases of open burning, of which 14 cases had been submitted to the deputy public prosecutor and five cases filed at the Sessions Court.
He also said the satellite image by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) detected 46 hotspots in Sumatra and 231 in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, which contributed to the hazy environment in Malaysia.
Sixteen hotspots were detected in Malaysia (11 in Sarawak and five in Sabah).
Public can refer to the DOE portal at http://www.doe.gov.my to find out the API reading for their areas.