EMB haze watch: Koronadal air quality recorded ‘fair’ to ‘good’

KORONADAL CITY, South Cotabato — Air quality in Koronadal City was recorded from “fair” to “good” on Tuesday morning, Sept. 1, as the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) Region 12 continued to monitor the city under its haze watch following forest fires reported in Kalimantan, indonesia.

Based on EMB’s Sept. 1 hourly PM2.5 monitoring, the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) was at 62 at 9 a.m. and 52 at 10 a.m., both classified as “fair.”

Readings improved to the “Good” category beginning at 1 a.m., when the AQI dropped to 31.

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The AQI remained within the “Good” range through 10 a.m., with hourly readings ranging from 25 to 50.

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The latest figures also showed an improvement from the 24-hour average recorded as of Aug. 31, when Koronadal’s PM2.5 AQI stood at 69.8, or within the yellow “fair” category.

Under EMB’s air quality guide, readings from zero to 50 are classified as “Good,” meaning air quality is considered satisfactory with little or no health risk. Readings from 51 to 100 fall under the “Fair” category, during which sensitive individuals may experience respiratory symptoms such as coughing.

EMB advised the public that regular outdoor activities may continue but urged residents to remain updated on air quality conditions.

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The monitoring comes amid reports of forest fires in parts of Indonesia, which lies south of the Philippines and relatively close to Mindanao.

EMB- 12, however, has yet to confirm whether the air conditions being monitored in Koronadal are linked to the haze from Indonesia.

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Koronadal is the capital of South Cotabato and seat of government of Region 12 or Soccsksargen. /mr