Tawau Haze Worsens

Small smoke in big smoke - smoke made in Malaysia in smoke imported from Indonesia

Worsen the worsening Tawau haze - Tawau was already covered with unhealthy haze for weeks causing many respiratory patients hospitalized. Yet on 8 Oct 2006 some one of environment ignorant made the situation worsen by open space burning at the West side of Tanjung Batu Hill.

Above picture taken on 8 October 2006 3:14PM. Brightest/Contrast of the photo was edited in order to see the smoke clearer.

Below photo at 3:16PM is original with no editing.

The above inserted small photo is how Bukit Gemok looks like in any morning at 7:00a.m.. But on 3rd October 2006 morning at the same time 7:00a.m. at the same spot one hardly could see Bukit Gemok. That Tuesday, Tawau reached an unhealthy level of 132 API

Tawau Haze Worsens -- The Tawau haze is worsening with the Air Pollution Index (API) reaching an unhealthy level of 132 on 3rd October 2006, more than double from 2nd October 2006's 53. Kota Kinabalu, Keningau and Sandakan recorded moderate readings, with 76, 71 and 65 respectively on 3rd October 2006

It started on 2nd October 2006 when visibility in Tawau dropped drastically from 2.5 kilometers in the morning to 800 meters in the afternoon.
Meteorological Department Director Tan Chen Kok Tan said the drop in visibility was caused by forest fires in Kalimantan and the south-westerly wind. The dry winds from Kalimantan brought the haze to Tawau and other parts of Sabah.

Tawau is not alone. The air quality in Singapore and other parts of Malaysia has also worsened, reducing visibility and disrupting flights in East Malaysia as the smoke haze from forest fires in the region thickened.

The haze from fires in Indonesia obscured the sunlight, lowered temperatures and reduced visibility. Smoke from forest fires in Malaysia and Indonesia cloud the region annually during the dry season from around July to October as farmers clear land for cultivation by setting fire to trees and bushes. The worst occurred in 1997 and 1998, causing economic losses of almost $9 billion in Southeast

In 1997, Sabah had a API record of 148 which indicates unhealthy air. Visibility dropped to below 4 kilometers.

Indonesian government has banned the practice of clearing land by burning brush, although it has largely failed to enforce this measure, the report said.

The haze has covered about 556,000 square kilometers of land in Sumatra and Kalimantan in Indonesia, delaying flights and forcing people to don masks,

Asia as travelers shunned the region and health-care costs increased.

Respiratory Ailments increased . The haze has resulted in an increase in the number of people suffering from respiratory ailments such as asthma in the state's worst-hit areas, and schools have been told to reduce outdoor activities, the report cited Chan as saying.

API - AIR POLLUTION INDEX

The API is used to measure the quality of air. The pollution index measures the quality of air on a scale of zero to 300. Zero to 50 as good, 51 to 100 as moderate, 101 to 200 as unhealthy and 201 to 300 is considered as very unhealthy. Anything above 300 is hazardous. The more the tiny elements in the air, the higher the API reading.

API reading table
good	0-51
moderate	51-100
unhealthy	101-200
very unhealthy	201-300
hazardous	301-500
emergency	above 500

More about the climate of Sabah : http://www.sabah.gov.my

INDEX : Environment 31-1-2008 January 31, 2008 09:47:25 AM