Coordinator to Prime Minister on Climate Change, Romina Khurshid Alam while taking serious notice of the rapidly worsening air quality in recent days in the capital city and its surrounding areas, has directed the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency to take necessary measures to cope with the issue in coordination with relevant official stakeholders including Islamabad Capital Territory Administration and Capital Development Authority.
The deteriorating air quality of Islamabad from the onset of mid-October has particularly started worsened further, leaving the city’s ambiance murky with increasing pollution, dust and vehicular emissions raising alarm bells for smog risk, the PM’s climate aide noted, according to a press statement issued here on Wednesday by the climate change & environmental coordination ministry.
The poor air quality, like many urban areas, can be attributed to several factors. The main causes include ehicle emissions, industrial pollution, construction dust, burning of waste and crop residue.
“Addressing these drivers of bad air quality in the city requires stringent enforcement of the relevant environmental regulations and fines. And, adoption of better waste management practices and public awareness campaigns to combat pollution effectively are essential to compliment the air quality improving measures.
Romina Khurshid Alam urged the city dwellers to play their part by avoiding burning of waste and crop residue.
She also urged the city’s waste collection authorities to regularly collect the waste from designated points and dispose of it properly on environmentally sustainable and scientific manner to avoid its burning by the people in streets.
Pak-EPA officials said that efforts are being taken to tackle the growing air pollution in the capital city for protection of public health from its hazardous impacts.
In a press statement, they said that air quality monitoring is being conducted on regular basis through mobile station and low cost qir quality monitoring sensors across the city.
The data collection through the Pak-EPA’s air quality monitoring network focuses on key pollutants and environmental factors impacting public health, including Particulate Matter (PM2.5 and PM10), Carbon dioxide (CO2), temperature, and relative humidity.
Findings obtained by AQI data showed that PM2.5 levels ranged between 55.25- 66.5 µg/m³, while PM10 ranged from 58-74.1 µg/m³.
