KUALA LUMPUR: MALAYSIA has urged Indonesia to immediately extinguish forest fires in Central Sumatra that are worsening the haze situation in the country.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri G. Palanivel said Indonesia needed to not only stop the forest fires from spreading but also prevent them.
He said the call was extended to Indonesia in a letter by Department of Environment director-general Datuk Halimah Hassan to her Indonesian counterpart.
“The letter expresses Malaysia’s concern with the increase of hot spots which cause haze in the peninsula since Sunday,” he said yesterday.
Palanivel said the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) in Singapore had reported that the number of hot spots in Sumatra rose to 143 yesterday from 129 on Monday.
Twently-five hot spots have been identified in Pahang, Johor (four), Sarawak (three) and one each in Kedah, Kelantan, Malacca, Selangor, Perak and Penang.
“The hot spots will be investigated and the relevant authorities will take action.”
As of 4pm yesterday, the air pollution index (API) for all states nationwide recorded moderate or good levels.
The situation showed an improvement from the readings four hours earlier, when unhealthy API levels were recorded in Port Klang (102), Shah Alam (103), Cheras (102) and Putrajaya (107).
Palanivel said the southwest monsoon played a major role in bringing the haze to Malaysia and this was expected to continue until September.
“Since February, the ministry had taken various measures to overcome this issue, including banning open burning to offset the impact compounded by the southwest monsoon and El Nino.”
Meteorological Department is corporate and commercial director Maznorizan Mohamad said the increase in the API levels was because of the current dry and hot weather.
“The dry spell has triggered forest fires that contribute to the formation of smoke and haze.”
She said the situation was expected to improve in September during the inter-monsoon phase.
Meanwhile, clinics and hospitals have been advised to have sufficient medications and medical supplies as the number of patients was expected to increase.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam advised the public to limit their outdoor activities, drink plenty of water, maintain good hygiene and use masks when going outdoors.
He said according to the National Haze Action Plan 2014, schools could be shut down if the API indicated an unhealthy level of 200 for more than 48 hours.