Cloud Seeding Extended As Sarawak Tackles Transboundary Haze

KUCHING, Sept 6 (Bernama) -- Cloud seeding operations across Sarawak have been extended until tomorrow in an ongoing effort to mitigate transboundary haze affecting the state.

Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) chairman Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas said the extension followed a successful operation yesterday, which brought rainfall over the targeted Bakun and Murum Dam areas.

"Today's operation will continue as planned and will be carried out where suitable cloud and weather conditions permit," he said in a statement today.

Sarawak has been conducting cloud-seeding operations targeting key dams and water catchment areas in the state since Thursday.

Meanwhile, Uggah said air quality in the Serian district had shown an improving trend, with the Air Pollutant Index (API) reading at 185 as at noon today, placing it in the unhealthy category.

"There is a downward trend for the API level in Serian as we enter the second of three days of monitoring. The API is primarily affected by wind direction and the source of hotspots," he said. 

He said continued monitoring was necessary before any formal recommendation regarding Serian's emergency status could be submitted to Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Uggah said data from the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre (ASMC) revealed zero hotspots in Sarawak, while 184 hotspots were detected in neighbouring Kalimantan, Indonesia.

--BERNAMA