Home ›› 22 Dec 2022 ›› Opinion
Safe and clean environment is essential to living and it is a birthright for every human. As Martin Luther King III said, “Because no matter who we are or where we come from, we're all entitled to the basic human rights of clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and healthy land to call home”.
But are we getting safe and clean air? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 7 million people die every year because of illnesses caused by polluted air. In fact, the leading cause of human death is related to air pollution. This issue is becoming worse every day, and we are barely cautious about it.
The trend of rapid development as well as booming industrialisation and urbanization have made our lives easier but it has given us some huge obstacles to handle. Air pollution is one of them. However, this has been in the making for a long time now. It all started during the first industrial revolution (1750-1820). The invention of producing energy by using fossil fuels marked the beginning of rapid development and also pollution. As the world was advancing, so was pollution. Now it is like a virus that humans cannot avoid because of air pollution is at a frightening stage. Yet the world is ignoring it. This is an epidemic by all definition.
Developing megacities are the hub of air pollution. Take Delhi’s air quality index as an example. Delhi is often regarded as the ‘Most Polluted City’ in the world. Air in Delhi is so bad that breathing in Delhi is like inhaling 40-50 cigarettes a day! A surprising fact is that Delhi even has an air pollution season. Every year, between October and November - the AQI rises to 300-350. During this time smog is quite heavy that people can barely see, let alone breathe. According to officials excess crop waste burned by Punjab and Haryana farmers causes this sudden rise of smog in the air. The AQI level of Delhi averages around 110-142 throughout the year. AQI level above 100 works is like a ‘slow poison.’
Major reasons for Delhi's air pollution are carbon emissions from vehicles, brick kilns, waste burning, industries, coal power plants and unplanned construction activities. Polluted air causes respiratory difficulties and long-term damage to people's nerves, brain, kidneys, liver, and other organs. In India, 1.7million people die every year because of air pollution. That's more than any other country in the world.
Delhi’s neighbours are its competitor for the ‘Most Polluted City’ title. Lahore is Pakistan’s second-largest city and is often mentioned as the most polluted city in the world. In November 2021, the AQI of Lahore rose above 500. Lahore is usually termed as ‘Dust Hell’ because of its air.
Air pollution in Lahore is caused by a combination of vehicle and industrial emissions, smoke from brick kilns, the burning of crop residue and general waste, and dust from construction sites. Other factors of air pollution include large-scale losses of trees to build new roads and buildings.
Earlier this year, Dhaka had the worst air quality index. Here, air pollution has become the norm. 58 per cent of Dhaka's air pollution is caused by brick kilns. Illegal chemical factories and vehicle emissions also play a major role. 23 million residents of Dhaka inhale the mixture of dust and chemicals regularly.
Therefore, people diagnosed with heart disease and lung cancer are increasing. Air pollution can cause long-term damage to people's nerves, brain, kidneys, liver, and other organs. Air pollution also impacts neurodevelopment and can trigger asthma, and even childhood cancer. Children who have been exposed to high levels of air pollution such as Delhi's air may be at greater risk for chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease later in life.
Most the polluted cities have some common grounds, Such as-- terrible waste management system, use of coal and crude oil, unplanned industries, brick kilns, poverty.
“Smoke lowering down from chimney-pots, making a soft black drizzle, with flakes of soot in it as big as full-grown snowflakes gone into mourning, one might imagine, for the death of the sun, Fog everywhere, fog down the river, where it rolls defiled among the tiers of shipping, and the waterside pollutions of a great dirty city”. This is Charles Dickens portraying London’s pollution through his writing.
Back in Dickens's time, London was the capital of the industrial revolution. Extracting energy from coal was one of the major reasons behind London’s pollution. Its pollution was so bad that around 4000 people used to die every week! Now the mega city has changed, its AQI score remains between 13-45 daily.
It took time to curb London’s air pollution and now it’s developing towards sustainability. In the 1800s London's AQI score was above 500. But at the end of the 19th century the pollution rate started to decline. Present levels are almost 40-times lower than at that peak. So how did London reduce their pollution?
There were three major steps which contributed to its reduction of pollution. The decentralisation of the United Kingdom played a key role. This made people spread towards other areas resulting in the reduction of population density. This change was followed by diversifying industries as well as cutting down the usage of coal.
Another major implementation was the Public Health Act for London in 1891. According to this act, companies faced financial penalties if they did not use cleaner and more efficient energy. Producing excessive smoke was also restricted. Companies had to pay huge financial penalties if they produced excessive smoke. Another implementation was the adaptation of the heat and gas cookers. In the year 1892, only 2 per cent of residents used gas cookers. However, this stat changed drastically. Within 19 years, the percentage went from 2 per cent to 69 per cent! This resulted in a trend shift. As gas is cleaner than coal it became a perfect alternative for energy resources.
In the current world, reducing air pollution is not easy. There are thousands of studies suggesting how to solve air pollution. Some common solutions for this problem are--shifting to E-vehicles, use of Renewable energy, bar the use of fossil fuel, build a sustainable waste management system.
On paper, these solutions might look easy to execute. But, in reality, it's easier said than done. To implement these solutions any country needs to have a strong economy. Fossil energy is still cheaper than green energy. Countries suffering from air pollution are either developing or least developed. The citizens of these countries are mostly poor. The list of obstacles also includes ignorant authority and lack of resources.
Shifting towards green energy can be a solution. However, adopting green energy and terminating fossil energy will create an imbalance. Keep this in mind; countries facing this problem have financial boundaries. Reducing the usage of crude oil and coal will backfire instantly. Replacing fossil energy with renewable energy is important. But, it is also important to make sure renewable energies are affordable so that people move towards renewable energy. It took London 100 years to overcome that situation even though the obstacles are far more complex now. London's air pollution was mostly driven by exploiting coal.
But the current developing megacities face air pollution because of vehicle emissions, brick kilns, construction and unplanned urbanisation. Another major problem is the lack of trees. Deforestation is destroying the ecosystem and its balance.
However, change is emerging. E-vehicles are taking over the street. Industries are decentralising and they are forced to regulate their waste. Renewable energy sources such as water turbines, air turbines and solar panels are being built. A shift to renewable energy is in process. Many major corporations and start-ups have been investing in renewable energy. Materials for renewable energy are also getting cheaper. Diversifying energy sources as well as implementing those correctly might help the world to fight this epidemic.
The writer is freelance contributor. He can be contacted at [email protected]
