Bad Haze Conditions in Singapore, JB and Beyond May Remain for Months

Posted on October 20, 2015 by Curious Cat

The haze conditions have been bad and getting worse in Malaysia and Singapore the last few weeks. Not since the extremely bad haze in 2013 have things been so bad.

Map of haze over Singapore and Malaysia for October 18th via the ASEAN Specialised Meteorological Centre.

Once again the main culprit is burning of forests in Indonesia. The map shows the darkest haze over the sources of the fires in Indonesia In the last week Melacca, Sengalor and even parts of Sarawak have had even worse pollution than Johor Bahru.

From the Department of Environment of Malaysia which publishes API* readings hourly for 4 sites in Johor (as well as the rest of Malaysia). A reading above 100 is unhealthy, above 300 is hazardous. In Malaysia this week readings have been above 150 several times and above 100 quite often.

Charts of Singapore haze readings, October 2015, via the the Singapore National Environment Agency.

The situation is expected to continue until the rainy season puts out the fires in January. There is firefighting ongoing but it is not able to put much of a dent in the massive outbreak of polluting fires.

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Extremely Bad Haze in Johor Bahru and Singapore

Posted on June 19, 2013 by Curious Cat

The haze in Johor Bahru and Singapore has been extremely bad the last few days. It hit the worst reading since 2006 in Singapore a few days ago and today seems much worse. [June 20th update: the air pollution readings exceeded all time highs in both Singapore and JB. And Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the haze could “easily last for several weeks and quite possibly longer until the dry season ends (September or October) in Sumatra.”]

Updated photo (see the bottom of post for original photo). Haze over Johor Bahru, June 20th at 11AM.

Photo of the same scene without hazy conditions, buildings in Singapore are visible in the background.

The conditions are mainly due to Indonesian fires. It is hard to reconcile the eco-city push for the Iskandar marketing however with the continued open burning of trash in downtown Johor Bahru daily [update a day or two after the severe haze problems Malaysia seems to have banned open burning if I read press reports correctly].

Update: From the Department of Environment of Malaysia [link broken so it was removed] which publishes API* readings 3 times a day from 4 sites in Johor (as well as the rest of Malaysia). A reading above 100 is unhealthy, above 300 is hazardous. With readings of 300 and above: healthy people will experience reduced endurance in activities. There may be strong irritations and symptoms and may trigger other illnesses. Elders and the sick should remain indoors and avoid exercise. Healthy individuals should avoid out door activities. For readings of 200-250, healthy people will be noticeably affected. People with breathing or heart problems will experience reduced endurance in activities. These individuals and elders should remain indoors and restrict activities.

date	Location (Johor)	7AM**	11AM**	5PM**
Jun 18th	Kota Tinggi	107	118	126
	Larkin Lama	116	125	122
	Muar	65	70	68
	Pasir Gudang	142	153	148
Jun 19th	Kota Tinggi	137	138	166
	Larkin Lama	122	124	152
	Muar	133	157	172
	Pasir Gudang	148	149	168
Jun 20th	Kota Tinggi	211	232	291
	Larkin Lama	171	181	219
	Muar	337	383	no report
	Pasir Gudang	190	199	333
	Singapore (psi**)	162	183	192
	Singapore (PM2.5**)	223	247	275
Jun 21st	Kota Tinggi	313	314	226
	Larkin Lama	190	197	158
	Muar	183	193	273
	Pasir Gudang	310	323	189
	Singapore (psi**)	184	206	198
	Singapore (PM2.5**)	247	262	250

Subscribe to the RSS feed for the Living in Malaysia blog. You may also like, Circumhorizontal Arcs, Fire Rainbows, Cloud Rainbows in JB from a day when pollution wasn’t a problem and nature put on a show.

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Dentist in Johor Bahru

Posted on September 13, 2012 by Curious Cat

I needed to get a regular teeth cleaning, so I searched for a good options the way any internet user would – online. Which reminded me, yet again, that the businesses in Johor Bahru should do better using the internet to market their businesses. One option I found never replied to my email so I moved on to the next: Roland Lin DDS. Again no response to email, but I called them and got an appointment.

photo of external of Lim Dental Surgery office

Exterior of Lim Dental Surgery office inside Holiday Plaza

I found him to be quite good and will go back. I chose him based on recommendations of 2 other bloggers: Dentist Recommended to Expats – Lim Dental Surgery, Johor Baru…I entrust my smile to him.

Location: Holiday Plaza, Johor Bahru (Holiday Plaza is the old mall one block from KSL Mall)
Telephone for dentist: 07 331 1858

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Vaccinations and Medical Services from the Clinic Australia

Posted on November 15, 2011 by Curious Cat

photo of strip mall and Klinik Australia fascade

External view the the Clinic Australia

I needed a vaccination booster and so looked for a place to get such services in Johor Bahru. I tried the Clinic Australia, near Plaza Pelangi, and was happy with the results. The clinic is located behind the Plaza Pelangi in the strip mall that hosts a few popular restaurants including: Rosmarino (Italian), Warakuya (Japanese) and Mulligan’s Irish Pub.

The clinic is a small operation in a strip of shops. I don’t think you can make reservations, I didn’t anyway, you just show up and wait as people are taken care of. They offer vaccinations and check ups (for visa, pre-employment and insurance). They also offer flu shots.

photo of the waiting room for the Clinic Austrailia

The waiting room is half of the available space (I think).

Address: 37 Jalan Kuning 2, Taman Peangi, 80400 Johor Bahru.
Phone: 07-3319380
No website or email.

Growing Your Own Food With a Balcony Vegetable Garden

Posted on November 5, 2011 by Curious Cat

A few years ago I starting growing my own vegetables and I found it incredible convient. You can save money too, but my main purpose is to eat food that taste better and is better for me. I have started a vegetable garden on the balcony of my condo in Johor Bahru.

Front of the nursery by John Hunter.

First I needed to buy some supplies. I was referred to a great nursery two blocks from KSL mall: Skyt Perniagaan Ming.

The planting boxes they have are especially nice. Very light but made of strong plastic. They also have a divider to leave a bit of room at the bottom of the planter for water to drain and the ability to let the water drain out the bottom by removing plugs (if you use it outside). If you use the boxes indoors you can leave the plugs in and it won’t drain out the bottom. They have 2 sizes, I got the smaller ones, which are about 25 cm by 75 cm by 20 cm (deep). They actually suggested the larger size for growing vegetables so we will see if I made a mistake.

Plants inside the nursery

I never used fertilizer when I grew in my yard. I just used some compost and regular dirt. I am using some long release fertilizer at their suggestion for these containers. I barely need to water them as it rains nearly every day heavily enough to water the plants (Since there is a balcony right above mine, there has to be a fair amount of wind and rain for nature to take care of the watering for me).

I didn’t buy enough seed packets at first (the packets don’t have a large number of seeds – many of the types don’t). I have bought more seeds now but in the interim I also just planted some seeds from some peppers and tomates I ate from the grocery store. Those tomato plants seem to be doing great (though I am not sure they will work in these small containers (they are the large, regular, tomatoes).

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