The 400,000 residents in Kuching, the capital of Sarawak, are increasingly concerned at the worsening haze which has already caused the air quality to reach unhealthy levels and reduced visibility by almost 90 percent.

The haze in the city has been recorded as the worst in the whole country as burning of plantation and farming lands across the border in Indonesia's Kalimantan continue unabated. The situation is exacerbated by the lack of rain at this time of the year.

The haze problem also comes at the height of the tourist season, causing concern that if the situation continues to worsen, tourists may stay away.

The increasingly-edgy residents in the city and its sprawling suburbs see it as almost reminiscent of the September 1997 haze crisis which blanketed most of Sarawak and large parts of Southeast Asia, with the blame placed squarely on Indonesia's forest fires and burning of plantation and farming lands, especially in West and South Kalimantan.

Then, the Air Pollutant Index (API) was at an all-time high of 800 and visibility of Kuching roads was less than a few hundred metres. Today, visibility in the city is down to 1.2km.

An API reading of 0-50 is 'good', 50-100 'moderate', 101 to 200 'unhealthy', 201 to 300 'very unhealthy', and 300 to 500 'hazardous'.

However, index figures have not been released since the height of the haze in 1997, only the descriptors, as the government was concerned over undue alarm, especially among foreign tourists, at the figures.

Johoreans at least have the option of referring to neighbour Singapore's National Environment Agency website

to obtain a daily reading of the Pollutants Standards Index which is the same as the API. The reading yesterday was 40.