5 Initiatives to Improve Urban Air Quality in Developing
Countries
There has been a steady improvement in urban air quality in industrialized
countries, including cities where increasing traffic is creating a different set of
problems. Thus, many have hoped that cities in the developing world would be
able to side-step some of the more drastic urban air pollution problems that had
been experienced in Europe, North America and Japan. Such optimism has not
been well-founded; many of the rapidly growing cities of the developing world
have followed the same path of air pollution build-up as that experienced by
developed county cities in earlier decades. For example, an assessment of air
quality management in Ankara by the United Nations Environment Programme
has concluded:
‘The causes of air quality problems in Ankara, and the adopted solutions, are
similar to those of London in the 1960s. Air quality problems are
predominantly caused by domestic burning of low-grade coal and are
particularly acute during winter in weather characterized by low wind speeds
and the formation of temperature inversions. These factors combine to cause
high concentrations of particulate matter and SO
(and its secondary
products). Furthermore, in London in the 1960s and currently in Ankara,
problems are, for the most part, being remedied by increasing the domestic
use of cleaner fuels.’
It is disappointing that there was, after almost 40 years, such a close rerun of the
episodes experienced, at some cost (see Section 1), elsewhere. However, these
disappointments have probably led to some of the situations where concerted
efforts are now being made to improve urban air quality.
The Kathmandu Valley
Air quality in the Kathmandu Valley, the largest urban conurbation in Nepal, is
acknowledged to have deteriorated. Fuelwood, agricultural residues and
animal waste make up the bulk of fuel consumption. The number of vehicles in
the Valley is rising rapidly. A large number of industries are classified as
‘polluting’. It is not surprising therefore that good visibility is down, on average,
to five days in a month in Kathmandu, respiratory diseases have increased in
recent years and low crop yields are recorded as being related to high levels of
dust deposition. The Nepalese Government has introduced measures to deal with
industry- and transport-generated pollution including the restriction of the
registration of two-stroke engine vehicles in important tourist centres (as these
account for over 50% of vehicles). There is a recent ban on three-wheeler tempos
in the Kathmandu Valley. Now there are up to 450 electric-powered Safa tempos
in use.
MARC, Air Quality Management and Assessment Capabilities in 20 Major Cities, published on
behalf of UNEP and WHO by the Monitoring and Assessment Research Centre, London, 1996.
UNEP, Nepal: State of the Environment 2001, United Nations Environment Programme,
Pathumthani, Thailand, 2001.
A Perspective on Global Air Pollution Problems
53
Countries
There has been a steady improvement in urban air quality in industrialized
countries, including cities where increasing traffic is creating a different set of
problems. Thus, many have hoped that cities in the developing world would be
able to side-step some of the more drastic urban air pollution problems that had
been experienced in Europe, North America and Japan. Such optimism has not
been well-founded; many of the rapidly growing cities of the developing world
have followed the same path of air pollution build-up as that experienced by
developed county cities in earlier decades. For example, an assessment of air
quality management in Ankara by the United Nations Environment Programme
has concluded:
‘The causes of air quality problems in Ankara, and the adopted solutions, are
similar to those of London in the 1960s. Air quality problems are
predominantly caused by domestic burning of low-grade coal and are
particularly acute during winter in weather characterized by low wind speeds
and the formation of temperature inversions. These factors combine to cause
high concentrations of particulate matter and SO
(and its secondary
products). Furthermore, in London in the 1960s and currently in Ankara,
problems are, for the most part, being remedied by increasing the domestic
use of cleaner fuels.’
It is disappointing that there was, after almost 40 years, such a close rerun of the
episodes experienced, at some cost (see Section 1), elsewhere. However, these
disappointments have probably led to some of the situations where concerted
efforts are now being made to improve urban air quality.
The Kathmandu Valley
Air quality in the Kathmandu Valley, the largest urban conurbation in Nepal, is
acknowledged to have deteriorated. Fuelwood, agricultural residues and
animal waste make up the bulk of fuel consumption. The number of vehicles in
the Valley is rising rapidly. A large number of industries are classified as
‘polluting’. It is not surprising therefore that good visibility is down, on average,
to five days in a month in Kathmandu, respiratory diseases have increased in
recent years and low crop yields are recorded as being related to high levels of
dust deposition. The Nepalese Government has introduced measures to deal with
industry- and transport-generated pollution including the restriction of the
registration of two-stroke engine vehicles in important tourist centres (as these
account for over 50% of vehicles). There is a recent ban on three-wheeler tempos
in the Kathmandu Valley. Now there are up to 450 electric-powered Safa tempos
in use.
MARC, Air Quality Management and Assessment Capabilities in 20 Major Cities, published on
behalf of UNEP and WHO by the Monitoring and Assessment Research Centre, London, 1996.
UNEP, Nepal: State of the Environment 2001, United Nations Environment Programme,
Pathumthani, Thailand, 2001.
A Perspective on Global Air Pollution Problems
53