NEA says 'sharp, acrid smell' during haze season doesn't mean poor air quality

Have you noticed a burning smell in the air and worried that Singapore is experiencing haze?

The "sharp, acrid" smell that one might occasionally detect during the haze season does not necessarily mean that air quality is poor, said the National Environment Agency (NEA) in a Facebook post on Tuesday (Aug 18).

This is because the odour from a mixture of gases emitted from faraway forest and peat fires can be discerned by humans even at  "very low concentrations". 

"These gases are separate from the pollutants NEA monitors for the PSI and PM2.5 readings," the agency added.

NEA publishes the 1-hr PM2.5 concentration readings and 24-hour PSI readings on the myENV app and its website.

Singapore may experience hazy conditions in the coming days if fire in the southern and central parts of Sumatra and various parts of Kalimantan continue to intensify, the Meteorological Service Singapore forecast on Monday.

NEA said then that it will continue to closely monitor the situation and provide daily advisories if the 24-hour PSI crosses into the "unhealthy range" of 101 and above.

The PSI in central Singapore is 70 as at 4pm on Tuesday, falling into the "moderate" category which includes values from 51 to 100.

A 24-hour PSI reading of 201 to 300 would mean the air quality is "very unhealthy" and a value of above 300 is indicated as hazardous.

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