Sumatra is just west of Singapore. We are told that slash and burn agriculture is commonly practiced there and that the burning season is now. During this time, when the winds are unfavorable, Singapore is blanketed by a thick smoky haze.
We've been experiencing this condition since last Thursday. In the past day or so, it has really gotten bad. The headline on Yahoo! Singapore says "haze in Singapore reaches 'unhealthy' level, worst in 16 years."
The reported fine particulate matter concentration measured outdoors here is 145-179 micrograms per cubic meter for the past 24 hours. Singapore translates this information into a "pollutant standards index" (PSI) of 109-122, which is classified as "unhealthy." The National Environment Agency warns that everyone should "avoid all physical activity outdoors."
The same data entered into the USEPA's air quality index (AQI) calculator produces an AQI rating of 197-229, which spans the upper end of "unhealthy" to the lower portion of the "very unhealthy" range. The health warnings would be similar.
There is a smell of wood smoke in the air. It's not constant, but occurs frequently, even indoors.
These hazy photos were taken on my walk to work this morning and from the 10th floor balcony of our office building. The visual range is about 5 kilometers.
We are told to expect conditions to continue like this for at least a few days.
2 comments:
sounds scary. Would wearing a Japanese-style face mask help?
Yea, do they sell HEPA filter face masks? Too bad you don't have all my fun work monitoring equipment, we could get some fun PM readings!
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