Sarawak to carry out cloud seeding Sept 3 to 5 as haze worsens, four water plants shut

Sarawak plans to carry out cloud seeding from September 3 to 5 in response to worsening haze and critically low reservoir levels, which have forced four water treatment plants to halt operations. According to Harian Metro, Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas revealed that the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) predicted conditions would be suitable for the operation during the three-day period.

Officials are set to meet tomorrow to finalize the procedure, with a focus on priority dams operated by Sarawak Energy Berhad, as they are crucial to the state's electricity supply. Following that, attention will shift to water reservoirs experiencing dangerously depleted levels, followed by other regions in need. Uggah, who leads the Sarawak State Disaster Management Committee, explained that four water treatment plants, located in Simunjan, Lingga, Spaoh, and Lichok, were compelled to cease operations due to the dangerously low reservoir levels.

The committee emphasized that cloud seeding cannot be executed at will because it necessitates favorable cloud formations. Uggah cautioned that launching an aircraft without generating any outcomes would be a waste of resources and could further infuriate the public. Sarawak has previously conducted two cloud-seeding operations in May and June when SEB warned that water levels at its dams were reaching perilous levels.

The upcoming operation arrives amid a severe haze crisis, with Uggah reporting that Air Pollutant Index readings at 10 AM today classified seven locations in the hazardous category, with Serian recording the highest at 475. Other locations, such as Tebedu (402), Lubok Antu (375), Lundu (363), Samarahan (333), Kuching (331), and Sri Aman (331), were also in hazardous or very unhealthy ranges.