7 areas record unhealthy air quality, worst in Penang
Seven areas recorded unhealthy air quality levels as at 9am this morning, with the air pollutant index (API) reading in Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang at the highest level with 172 and Seberang Perai at 167. Other areas with readings in the unhealthy level include: Taiping (157), Ipoh (142), Batu Muda (107), Shah Alam and Port Klang (101). According to the Department of Environment website, API in the 0-50 range is good, 51-100 is moderate, 100-200 is unhealthy, 200 to 300 very unhealthy; and above 300, hazardous. Air quality in Petaling Jaya, Banting and other areas in the Klang Valley showed a vast improvement from the same time yesterday, recording moderate levels with an API of 96 for both. At 9am yesterday, Petaling Jaya recorded a reading of 256 and Banting was 249, breaching the "very unhealthy" air quality mark. Putrajaya also recorded a moderate reading today at 98, a drop from yesterday's reading of 235. The horizontal visibility level at 10am around major airports have improved except for Langkawi, where it was 500m compared to Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang at 1.5 km. – October 5, 2015.
