Lubok Antu haze eases into unhealthy range

KUCHING: Air quality in Lubok Antu improved from the ‘Very Unhealthy’ to ‘Unhealthy’ category by 4pm today, with its Air Pollutant Index (API) reading falling to 196.

According to the Natural Resources and Environment Board (NREB), the reading dropped from 205 at 8am to 196 in its latest 4pm update.

Lubok Antu and Betong (MCAQM) became the latest locations to move out of the ‘Very Unhealthy’ level and ‘Moderate’ respectively.

Serian recorded API reading at 181, followed by Tebedu at 168 and Sri Aman at 166.

Samarahan recorded an API reading of 153, while Kuching stood at 152.

NREB classifies API readings between 101 and 200 as ‘Unhealthy’, while readings from 201 to 300 are categorised as ‘Very Unhealthy’.

The board said an API reading in the ‘Unhealthy’ range could worsen the health condition of high-risk individuals, particularly those with heart and lung complications.

As of 4pm, the remaining monitored locations recorded moderate air quality, except Bario which remained in the ‘Good’ category with an API reading of 41.

NREB also noted that API readings are calculated based on the 24-hour running average of the most dominant air pollutant parameter.