SINGAPORE – The 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) for Oct 11 is forecast to be in the “unhealthy to high unhealthy range”, staying out of the “very unhealthy” range of 201 to 300.
In the National Environment Agency’s (NEA) daily advisory issued at 7pm on Oct 10, the agency noted: “Moderate to dense smoke haze from southern Sumatra was observed to drift towards Singapore. Smoke haze was also observed in many parts of Kalimantan.”
It added that the haze will continue to drift towards Singapore under prevailing east-south-easterly or southerlywinds.
This marks a slight improvement from the previous day, when NEA forecasted an “unhealthy to low very unhealthy range”.
As at 7pm on Oct 10, however, the PSI reading had not entered the “very unhealthy” band. Readings on the day peaked at 183 in the central region, with the reading in the region being 168 at 7pm.
In other regions, the 24-hour PSI readings also hovered at unhealthy levels, measuring 118 in the north, 128 in the south, 150 in the east and 152 in the west.
The haze stems from forest and land fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan, largely driven by the use of fire to clear land for agriculture.
Fuelled by the ongoing El Nino, these dried-out peatlands can burn for weeks once ignited and are notoriously difficult to put out.
Reduce outdoor physical activities
Air quality is considered unhealthy when the PSI – a 24-hour rolling average of six key air pollutants – is in the range of 101 to 200.
Under unhealthy 24-hour PSI readings, healthy individuals should reduce prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical activities, according to the haze advisory.
Read Full Article At Source
