Eighteen areas in the peninsula and Sarawak recorded unhealthy Air Pollutant Index (API) readings as at 9am today.

The affected locations in the peninsula are in Malacca, Negeri Sembilan, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Johor, stated the Department of Environment (DOE) on its website.

Bukit Rambai recorded the highest API at 160, followed by Bandaraya Melaka (159), Port Dickson (147), Banting (144) and Nilai (142).

Other areas with unhealthy API readings are Seremban (139), Muar (136), Port Klang (136), Putrajaya (132), Shah Alam (130), Petaling Jaya (127), Batu Muda (115), Cheras (110), Samarahan (109), Kuching (105), Pasir Gudang (105), Sri Aman (103) and Kuala Selangor (101).

Air quality with API readings of 0-50 is categorised as good, 51-100 (moderate), 101-200 (unhealthy), 201-300 (very unhealthy) and 301 and above (hazardous).

The public can visit the DOE's website at http://www.doe.gov.my to know the current API readings.