Air Pollution - The Times Of Central Asia

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Report Addresses Air Pollution in Almaty

On October 30, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Kazakhstan, together with the Urban Center of Almaty Management University, presented the results of their joint efforts within the Green and Safe Streets Initiative, which aims to address air pollution in Kazakhstan’s largest city, Almaty. This initiative is part of the regional City Experiment Fund program funded by the Ministry of Finance of Slovakia. The Green and Safe Streets Initiative included three interrelated clusters of activities: a social impact campaign, tactical urban actions on Berezovsky, Turgut Ozal, and Kazybek bi streets in Almaty, and the installation of air pollution measuring devices, which resulted in the development of methodological recommendations. These actions helped identify further steps to address the complex challenge of improving air quality in Almaty. The actions and approaches implemented within the City Experiment Fund framework are expected to help reduce air pollution by increasing green spaces, introducing energy-efficient technologies in the housing sector, improving infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists, and prioritizing public transport. According to IQAir, Almaty, along with the industrial city of Karaganda, has the highest level of air pollution in Kazakhstan and is among the 25 most polluted cities in the world. The primary sources of air pollution in Almaty are motor vehicles and private-sector and municipal heating that burns coal. During the winter, Almaty is covered by a deep smog that causes severe health problems and a high prevalence of respiratory diseases in the local population. According to an Asian Development Bank report, the decline in Almaty’s air quality is attributable to the city’s population growth, rapid urbanization, inefficient public transportation, and heavy reliance on coal for power generation and residential heating. The city’s valley setting exacerbates these factors, creating ideal conditions for solid temperature inversions during the late fall and winter that trap pollutants in the lower atmosphere. Additionally, the ADB report concludes that the city’s low wind speeds cause pollutants to accumulate and recirculate at the city's surface level.

World Bank Environmental Awareness Ecology Finance Air Pollution WHO

New Report From World Bank Condemns Tashkent Air Quality

A new World Bank report entitled "Air Quality Assessment for Tashkent and the Roadmap for Air Quality Management Improvement in Uzbekistan" gives a frightening assessment of the air quality in the country’s capital. The report finds that ambient PM2.5 concentrations in Tashkent, which peak in winter, substantially exceed international air quality standards. The annual average concentration exceeds six times the WHO’s average yearly guideline of 5 µg/m3. In Tashkent, PM2.5 ambient air pollution has considerable health and economic costs. It can be linked to health costs equivalent to 0.7% of Uzbekistan’s gross domestic product (GDP). Most air quality-related diseases and premature deaths in Uzbekistan and worldwide are linked to PM2.5, which the World Health Organization (WHO) has identified as the pollutant with the gravest health risk. According to IQAir, Tashkent, like other Central Asian cities, frequently ranks among the world's most polluted urban areas. According to the report, the primary sources of human-caused PM2.5 pollution in Tashkent are the heating (28%), transport (16%), and industrial sectors (13%). Cross-boundary sources like windblown dust (36% PM2.5 pollution) dominate in the summer, while commercial and residential heating is the primary source of PM2.5 pollution in the winter. The report’s AQM roadmap for Uzbekistan formulates priority actions such as updating air quality standards and legislation, developing a national AQM strategy and coordination mechanism, and taking measures in the industrial, transport, and heating sectors, which are most responsible for air pollution. The AQM roadmap recommends investments in emission reduction measures. The roadmap suggests that emissions from the heating sector can be reduced by improving the quality of fuels used and the efficiency of heating appliances, implementing energy efficiency measures, and switching to cleaner heating alternatives. At a government meeting on October 9, Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a draft master plan for the city of Tashkent until 2045. Today the population of Tashkent is more than 3 million people, and it keeps growing. Over the past ten years, the average air temperature in Tashkent has increased by 1 degree Celsius. The number of cars is rising, and traffic is becoming increasingly congested. The new master plan takes these aspects into account. It plans to increase green areas in Tashkent and its suburbs threefold to 25,000 hectares, which will increase per capita green area from the current 3 to 6 square meters. Mirziyoyev emphasized the need to turn Tashkent into a city where at least 7.5 million people can live and work.

Healthcare UNICEF Children health security Air Pollution

Air Pollution Linked to One in Five Infant Deaths in Central Asia

According to a report by UNICEF, an estimated 6,441 children and teenagers died from causes attributable to air pollution in 23 countries across Europe and Central Asia in 2021. Statistics show that 85% of the children died in the first year of their lives, and one in five infant deaths were linked to air pollution. As stated in the report, “Most deaths were attributed to ambient and household fine particulate matter air pollution (PM2.5). And all of these deaths were preventable." In 2021, the region's children and teenagers lost more than 580,000 years of healthy life (DALYs) as a result of premature death and disability caused by air pollution. Compared to other environmental factors, including high temperatures, unsafe water, and poor sanitation, polluted air has been found, by far, the most life-threatening. Exposure to PM2.5 air pollution is also associated with higher rates of miscarriage, early fetal loss, preterm birth, and low birth weight and in pregnant women, increases the risk of gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, and postpartum depression. By restricting fetal growth, air pollution can significantly increase the risk of disease, heart defects, pneumonia, asthma, eczema, allergies, and high blood pressure. Even before birth, air pollution can harms a child’s lungs, brain, and organs, affecting cognitive development and raising the risk of respiratory diseases throughout the child's life. Since children breathe more air relative to their body weight, they absorb more pollutants than adults, and for this reason, newborns are especially vulnerable to pneumonia, a leading cause of infant death. Air pollution in Europe and Central Asia, especially from PM2.5 and PM10 particles, is mainly caused by the use of fossil fuels in homes, businesses, and institutions. Coal is especially harmful to children’s health. Energy sources vary between and within countries depending on power supplies and infrastructure. High levels of air pollution from the use of coal for residential heating in winter, coupled with the interaction of ambient air pollution with indoor air pollution in homes, schools, health care facilities, etc., are cited by UNICEF as the primary sources of exposure for children. UNICEF notes the importance of the region's governments and institutions focusing more attention and resources to air pollution prevention, energy efficiency, clean energy use, supporting clean air measures, and protecting children from exposure. The organization also emphasizes the need to develop air quality warning systems and corresponding action plans for schools and kindergartens in Europe and Central Asia. Last but not least, as a measure to improve air quality, UNICEF recommends enhancing data collection to better understand local pollution, campaigns promoting clean energy and energy efficiency in homes, and a strict smoking bans in indoor public spaces. High levels of air pollution observed in Central Asian countries is ongoing and the subject of several articles previously covered by The Times of Central Asia.

Transport Healthcare Social Local Economy Air Pollution

Better Buses Help Air Quality in Bishkek to Improve

Officials claim that the air quality in Kyrgyzstan’s capital, Bishkek, has significantly improved over the last two years due to the ongoing renewal of the municipal transport fleet, switching residential heating from coal to natural gas, and extinguishing the sanitary landfill near Bishkek that had burned for decades. Chyngyzbek Abdymalik Uulu, an atmospheric air specialist at the Kyrgyz Ministry of Natural Resources, Ecology, and Technical Supervision, told Birinchi Radio that the primary sources of air pollution in Bishkek were low-quality coal, exhaust gases from motor transport, and the burning of municipal solid waste at the city landfill. The official says that, in large part, the air quality has improved due to the decreasing number of minibuses on Bishkek streets. Over the past 30 years, "markhrutka" minibuses — mainly aged Mercedes minivans — have been the primary type of municipal transport in Bishkek, vastly surpassing in number the limited fleet of large buses and trolleybuses. Running on diesel, these old marshrutkas spew harmful gases into the atmosphere and congest city traffic, since they stop anywhere on demand. Abdymalik Uulu said more than 3,000 minibuses ran in the capital until 2022. After their number was reduced over the last two years, diesel fuel consumption decreased by 100 tons daily. The Bishkek municipality has now removed the minibuses from the central part of the city and replaced them with large buses running on liquefied natural gas. In 2023, Bishkek purchased a thousand large buses from China, which have been arriving in the capital city in batches over the past year. Today, the municipal fleet has 1,200 buses. In addition, by the end of 2024, the city will receive 100 12-meter-long buses, and 120 electric buses will arrive in the second quarter of 2025. Both officials and analysts agree that renewing the municipal transport fleet will improve the air quality in Bishkek. Abdymalik Uulu added that gasification is another reason for the improved air quality. To date, about 20,000 households have been connected to natural gas networks, which has decreased coal burning by 58,000 tons. Also, he said, all of Bishkek’s 74 large boiler houses that used to burn large amounts of coal daily have now been converted to electricity and natural gas. Finally, the Bishkek sanitary landfill, which burned for decades and released large volumes of harmful emissions, has been completely extinguished.

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Central Asian Countries Gather to Share Air Pollution Solutions

On June 19th a political and regional forum was organized in Tashkent under the slogan “Building a Clean Air Future in Central Asia”. The forum was organized in partnership with the Uzbek Ministry of Ecology, the World Bank, and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). Participants included senior officials from the governments of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The forum was created to allow the countries of Central Asia to exchange knowledge on how to prevent air pollution. Air quality in both urban and rural areas is affected by transboundary pollution, caused by emissions from burning fossil fuels in industry, the heating sector, and transport. Another source of pollution in cities is sand and dust storms. Most air quality-related illnesses and premature deaths in Central Asia are attributable to delicate particulate matter 2.5 microns or less in diameter (PM2.5). Their concentration in large cities is often several times higher than the permissible air quality parameters recommended by the World Health Organization. This is especially noticeable during winter, when the heating sector uses coal and gas for power. According to the IQAir portal, which monitors global air quality, Central Asian cities are often among the most polluted cities in the world. The participants at “Building a Clean Air Future in Central Asia” studied each other's measures and practices in air quality management. They then defined some priority directions for accelerating regional cooperation on these issues. Valerie Hickey, the World Bank's global director for environment, natural resources and the blue economy, commented: “Air quality management is a complex challenge that requires understanding where the pollution comes from and prioritizing actions in those sectors. This will take better data and stronger regulations harmonized across borders, credible institutions, and clean infrastructure. Working together, the countries can clean the air across Central Asia.” Sylvie Motar, deputy director of the European office of the UNEP, added: “Air pollution knows no borders, so cooperation between Central Asian countries in this area is essential. This dialogue will help increase investments in clean air to protect the health of the people of Central Asia.”

Legislation Air Pollution Traffic Transport

Bishkek Bets on Bikes and Buses

To alleviate congestion and traffic bottlenecks in the capital, the Bishkek Mayor's Office has green-lit a strategic plan for enhancing the city's road transport infrastructure over the 2024-2030 period. This initiative, as detailed on the municipal website, encompasses an ambitious range of projects. Highlights include the construction of bridges and new road junctions, the introduction of bike lanes within the road network, the consolidation of dedicated lanes into a coherent system, the expansion of parking facilities including an increase in bicycle parking spaces, and the establishment of transport hubs and park-and-ride lots. The vision driving these efforts is to significantly reduce car dependency in Bishkek, promoting instead a robust network of public and bicycle transport options. Plans are underway to construct seven park-and-ride facilities around the city’s perimeter, encouraging commuters to opt for public transport upon entering Bishkek. City officials have consistently advocated for strategies to lower rampant smog levels and congestion, including proposals to limit private car access into the city based on a vehicle's license plate number. Furthermore, the Mayor's Office announced plans to establish at least two advanced transport and transfer hubs at key entry points into Bishkek. These hubs will serve as critical junctions for intercity and regional bus routes, facilitating seamless connections with the city's public transport system. By 2030, these initiatives aim to achieve a 20% reduction in car usage within the city and cut congestion by 30%.