case study on air pollution in pakistan

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Existing Smog in Lahore, Pakistan: An Alarming Public Health Concern

Ramsha riaz.

1 Dow Medical College, Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS), Karachi, Pakistan

Khizar Hamid

Lahore, the second-largest and most polluted city in Pakistan, has been plagued by a heavy blanket of smog recently. The ever-growing urbanization and industrialization have contributed to the worsening air quality of the city. Smog, being hazardous to health, is leading to a rapid sprout in multiple health-related problems, as well as raising concerns about the long-term deleterious effects on public health. The current situation is expected to worsen due to the lack of an active action plan from the government's side and a failure of concerned authorities to take note of the urgency of the situation. Hence, we aim to highlight this pressing issue in the light of previously published articles, to alert the relevant authorities regarding the detrimental consequences smog can have on public health and urge them to take immediate action to avoid further damage.

Pakistan is the most urbanized country in South Asia [ 1 ], and its second-largest city Lahore, growing at a rate of 4% annually [ 2 ], is regarded as the most polluted city in Pakistan. Urban settlements are frequently plagued by smog in Asia, and Lahore is no exception. Following the pattern of last year, Lahore has once again been engulfed by a disturbingly heavy blanket of smog, shrouding the entire city and taking a toll on people’s lives. The exorbitant rise in automobiles, unchecked deforestation, expeditious urbanization, and unabated growth of industries [ 1 - 2 ] have contributed to this alarming situation over the years.

Smog accounts for a rapid sprout in fatal health problems, including exacerbation of asthma, allergies, eye infections, respiratory tract infections, and cardiac pathologies leading to premature death. Sughis et al. reported a concerning finding related to this situation, observing significantly higher levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure in the school children of Lahore, exposed to high levels of air pollution [ 3 ]. This worrisome observation helps highlight the long-term deleterious effects on the health of the public.

The Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) and the provincial EPAs are in charge of monitoring air pollution in Pakistan. In 2010, the Pak-EPA drafted the National Air Quality Standard (NEQS) for ambient air quality [ 2 ]. However, the proposed annual mean levels for the ambient particulate matter, PM 2.5 and PM 10 , were higher than the stricter World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, which are 10 μg/m 3 and 20 μg/m 3 respectively [ 2 ]. According to data, the levels of the ambient particulate matter reported in Lahore far exceed the recommended values of both WHO guidelines and NEQS guidelines [ 2 , 4 ]. A study conducted in Lahore over a period of 5 years, aiming to compare the level of fine particles with the aforementioned guidelines, concluded that the annual average PM 2.5 of the areas studied was 136.5 ± 34.1 μg/m 3 [ 4 ], which is roughly 14 folds higher than the WHO guidelines. This study also mentions that this level of particulate matter was comparable to one of the most polluted megacities of the world, Delhi, at 143.0 ± 17.8 μg/m 3 [ 4 ]. This elucidates the worsening state of air pollution in the city of Lahore.

Furthermore, the fact that only around 1% of the country’s industrial establishments report their emissions [ 2 ] raises distressing concerns over the neglected air quality of the city and its effect on public health. Children are predominantly susceptible to these detrimental consequences. A study reporting the long-term effects of the great London Smog of 1952 concluded that exposure to smog during the first year of life increased the risk of childhood asthma by 19·87% [ 5 ].

Given the damage that smog can incur, it is imperative that prudent measures be undertaken to improve air quality. Most environmental regulatory organizations fall behind due to the lack of specialized equipment, standardized protocols, trained personnel, and funds [ 2 ]. The government could start by allocating appropriate funds for monitoring and reducing harmful emissions, carrying out nationwide afforestation programs, and switching to renewable resources. Considering the bleak outlook that the current situation portrays, the need of the hour is establishing a stringent action plan to prevent adverse outcomes on public health and reduce the economic burden on the health sector of the country.

Last but not the least, the public needs to be made aware of the possible health issues that can be encountered during this environmental hazard and educated on ways they can protect themselves and prevent exacerbations of pre-existing medical conditions. Public service messages on television, radio, and the Internet, along with the distribution of educational pamphlets and brochures can be a few of the effective steps for ensuring this. 

The content published in Cureus is the result of clinical experience and/or research by independent individuals or organizations. Cureus is not responsible for the scientific accuracy or reliability of data or conclusions published herein. All content published within Cureus is intended only for educational, research and reference purposes. Additionally, articles published within Cureus should not be deemed a suitable substitute for the advice of a qualified health care professional. Do not disregard or avoid professional medical advice due to content published within Cureus.

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Analysis: How Lahore Became the World’s Most Polluted Place

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How Lahore Became the World’s Most Polluted Place

Unprecedented smog in the “city of gardens” comes from a confluence of familiar factors..

This past month, Lahore, Pakistan, has repeatedly topped the daily ranking of most polluted city in the world. Pollution and winter weather conditions combine to shroud the city in smog—disrupting flights, causing major road closures, and wreaking havoc on the health of its citizenry.

The problem of air pollution has been steadily growing in Lahore and many other cities in Punjab province. Punjab is the most populous province in Pakistan with an estimated population of 110 million people. Five cities in Punjab were listed among the 50 most polluted cities in the world in 2020. The situation in other major Pakistani cities, such as the coastal megalopolis of Karachi, is not much better. Yet, the current situation in Lahore is most alarming, with its fine particulate count repeatedly rising well above 40 times the World Health Organization’s air quality guideline values.

Prolonged or heavy exposure to hazardous air causes varied health complications, including asthma, lung damage, bronchial infections, strokes, heart problems, and shortened life expectancy. The Global Alliance on Health and Pollution  estimated in 2019 that 128,000 Pakistanis die annually due to air pollution-related illnesses. Decision-makers have been slow to react to the pollution problem. In 2019, Pakistan’s minister of climate change infamously dubbed growing concern about the smog problem in Lahore as being a conspiratorial attempt to spread misinformation . Many officials and politicians continue blaming stubble burning by Indian farmers as the main cause for Lahore’s smog problem. Blaming India may be a tit-for-tat response to similar Indian accusations, but it not an accurate assessment. Ever-changing wind patterns during the stubble-burning season mean wind directions keep fluctuating across the India-Pakistan border. “The smog in Lahore is caused by a confluence of metrological and anthropogenic factors,” said Saleem Ali, a member of the United Nations’ International Resource Panel. Namely, temperature inversion traps pollution in the atmosphere, which—alongside seasonal crop burning on the Indian-Pakistani border—combines with other sources of year-round pollution and fog to cause a spike in pollution and winter smog.

The reasons why air quality has been steadily declining in cities like Lahore are numerous. Vehicular emissions, industrial pollution, fossil fuel-fired power plants, the burning of waste materials, and coal being burned by thousands of brick kilns spattered across the province are all part of the problem. A Food and Agriculture Organization’s source appropriation study in 2020 singles out power producers, industry, and the transport sector in particular as culprits.

Over the past 15 years, Lahore has lost a significant proportion of its tree cover due to an aggressive plan to build highways, underpasses, and overpasses. Car sales in the city are booming, and many of the cars plying the roads spew toxic emissions due to a lack of vehicular inspections and widespread adulteration of fuel. Even the unadulterated form of fuel available in Lahore is of low quality.

The lack of vehicular fitness and emissions testing, alongside use of poor-quality fuel, have compounded the city’s air pollution problem, said Hammad Naqi Khan, director-general of World Wildlife Fund-Pakistan. Federal plans to switch to Euro 5-compliant fuel have faltered due to lingering economic troubles, including rising inflation. Faced with an alarmingly high level of air pollution in Lahore, the Punjab government has announced the imposition of a provincial embargo on Euro 2 fuel supplies, which is supposed to go into effect as of next month. Whether the provincial government’s plan to switch to cleaner fuel will fare any better than the federal government’s earlier resolve remains to be seen.

Conversely, bicyclists and pedestrians, who made up almost 45 percent of traffic in Lahore in 2015, remain a low priority when it comes to planning transport infrastructure, evidenced by the near absence of bike lanes or even sidewalks. And while Lahore has invested in expensive metro bus and rail projects, the feeder transit system needed to further optimize use of these metro public transport projects has not received enough attention.

Lahore, along with the rest of Pakistan, desperately needs to shift away from its reliance on fossil fuels. Doing so would help clean up the transport and energy production sectors simultaneously. Last year, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority noted that due to fossil fuels’ price volatility and renewables’ decreasing cost, viable options for meeting the country’s energy needs through more sustainable sources were needed. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has also set an ambitious target for Pakistan to generate 30 percent of its energy needs via renewable sources by 2030. Achieving this target will not be easy. Powerful interests are invested in the promotion of fossil fuels and the transmission infrastructure it requires.

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When faced with acute power shortages, Pakistan has recently turned to China to help meet its electricity shortfalls under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). As elsewhere within China’s broader Belt and Road Initiative, China exported its coal-fired technology to plants being set up in the Punjab and elsewhere in the country. Around 19 percent of power generation in Pakistan in 2019-2020 was produced by just four coal-fired CPEC power plants, including the 1320MW Sahiwal coal-fired power plant, located in the agricultural heartland of Punjab.

China has recently vowed to stop financing coal-fired energy projects abroad, but this announcement will probably not impact projects that are already in the pipeline, including another coal-fired plant in Arifwala, Punjab. As Pakistan’s government also remains keen to exploit indigenous coal reserves to produce electricity, it has announced plans to mitigate pollution by potentially converting existing and future coal-fired plants into coal-to-liquid or coal-to-gas plants. Yet, environmentalists worry such processes are costly, water and energy intensive, and do not provide a sustainable solution to meet Pakistan’s energy requirements.

Judicial activism, monitoring, and reportage by local and international agencies has at last compelled Punjab’s government to pay attention to Lahore’s pollution problem. The provincial Environment Protection Department is now tracking and reporting air quality data, but this data is still unreliable, patchy, and based on a handful of air quality monitors. The provincial government also has several rules on the books that enable it to measure and fine polluters. Yet, there is a lack of capacity and resolve to ensure effective enforcement due to contradictory positions adopted by those in charge to deal with the problem. Although the Commissioner Lahore Office has constituted anti-smog squads in the city, Punjab’s minister for environment protection has simultaneously asked law enforcement agencies to act against private individuals or companies issuing unauthorized air quality data, which he feels is harming the country’s reputation.

Decision-makers in Lahore focus on Band-Aid solutions; for example, on particularly pollution-heavy days, offices and schools are closed to lessen human exposure and reduce traffic emissions. Punitive measures also target farmers who burn stubble and clamp down on brick kilns. However, environmental lawyer Ahmad Rafay Alam said while these “punitive actions against softer targets may be visible, they will remain ineffective if other major sources of air pollution are not addressed.”

According to architect and sustainable design advocate Raza Ali Dada, “Lahore needs a multipronged approach to contend with its environmental woes, including air pollution, which in turn necessitates attention to improved urban planning as well.” Regularizing urban slums that lack any form of waste management could help address problematic practices, such as trash burning, for instance. More efficient urban management can reduce energy consumption and vehicular emissions. Instead, there is a profusion of encroachment into surrounding agricultural areas to create gated communities without much thought to the enormous environmental stress caused by unplanned urban sprawl.

Khan’s stated environmental agenda of “greening” Pakistan has not prevented him from endorsing the multitrillion-rupee Ravi Riverfront Urban Development Project. Critics fear this project will cause massive displacement, wreak havoc to Pakistan’s longest river’s ecology, and worsen pollution and air quality in Lahore for years to come.

In the absence of comprehensive and concerted efforts to combat air pollution, Lahore, once known as the “city of gardens,” is tragically choking on toxic air. Instead of looking forward to the welcomed reprieve of winter months, Lahore’s 13 million residents now must brace themselves for another bout of smog, which has acquired the status of a “fifth season.”

Syed Mohammad Ali is a nonresident scholar at the Middle East Institute, and he teaches at Georgetown and Johns Hopkins Universities.

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

The nexus between vegetation, urban air quality, and public health: an empirical study of lahore.

• 1 Asia-Australia Business College, Liaoning University, Shenyang, China
• 2 Faculty of Business and Administration, Information Technology University, Lahore, Pakistan
• 3 Asia-Australia Business College, Liaoning University, Shenyang, China
• 4 School of Finance, Qilu University of Technology (Shandong Academy of Sciences), Jinan, China

Global climate change and the deteriorating quality of urban air are the major issues affecting the atmospheric ecosystem of Pakistan. To avoid poor monitoring and management of air pollution, improvements through the latest technologies such as GIS and remote sensing are required. This research involves spatial analysis, which discusses the impact of vegetation on air quality and public health. Data of air quality at 20 different points, showing the concentration of four pollutants, namely NOx, CO, SO 2 , and PM 10 , with mean observations for 24-h, are taken from EPA, Lahore. The results show that the concentrations of SO2, CO, and PM 10 are exceptionally high at the site of the Badshahi Mosque. The analysis shows that the highest polluted areas have the lowest vegetation levels, whereas areas with low pollution concentration have more vegetation cover. Moreover, less vegetation has a higher death rate attributable to household air pollution. The study suggests that greening strategies, vegetation screens, and vegetation barriers should mitigate urban heat air pollution and minimize the air pollution attributable deaths. For pollution and vegetation monitoring, strict laws and monitoring programs must be implemented in major cities.

Introduction

Air contamination is a danger to human health as well as wellbeing ( 1 ). Almost all big developing countries are facing this issue. Lahore, Karachi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Shanghai, Beijing, and several other cities are at considerable risk of pollution. In Pakistan, pollution issues have constantly been rising, leading the country to possess several issues that urgently need to be acknowledged. Even though Pakistan's power consumption remains low by global standards, CO, NOx, and pollutant emission levels are significant air pollutants in urban areas, including Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Quetta, and Peshawar ( 2 ). Pakistan Economic Survey describes cars and factory waste as the critical cause of air pollution. Throughout the past decade, a significant amount of pollution was raised in the metropolitan region of Lahore owing to haphazard urban development and expanded transportation. People who live closer to main roads, manufacturing areas, and complex settlements are more vulnerable to health problems. Pollutant emission detection, tracking, geographic processing, and analysis of Lahore contaminants are now in progress. In addition to rapid industrialization, construction, and economic growth, Lahore, like other metro cities globally, is seeing more strain, mostly on climate.

With newer buildings in the town and the extent of city roads, plants are being chopped down, and agricultural lands have been cleaned up with the intent of new housing strategies that strongly affect the air pollution of the city of Lahore. The regional capital that has destroyed more than 2,200 trees due to numerous infrastructure construction schemes during the last 2 years (i.e., 2014 and 2015) is expected to lose 1,700 more trees due to yet another massive project initiated in 2016. After August 2015, the city destroyed thousands of trees due to numerous development and transport schemes, such as the Jail Road Signal Free Project, the Lahore Orange Line Metro Train Project, and the Connected Canal Road from the University of Punjab via the Kareem area. The Signal Free project absorbed 196 forests all along the road from Liberty to Shadman's Fawara Chowk. For the Link Canal Road from the University of Punjab, through Kareem Lane, constructed around 2 years ago (i.e., 2014 and 2015), 120 trees have been cleared ( 3 ).

Unfenced green belts also fall under green spaces throughout the city and are of great environmental significance. They aid in stormwater management and serve as buffer areas for groundwater refilling. Currently, when most green belts are being converted into asphalt, the depletion of groundwater is impaired, and there is a rapid decline. It may be of little consequence to city dwellers living in air-conditioned vehicles. Still, it is of considerable significance to some less fortunate community members, such as shoppers, traders, and riders, who are more vulnerable to high heat and air pollution.

Previous studies mainly focus on the sources of greenhouse gasses and their impact on the economyand health, among others ( 4 , 5 ); another block of researchers attempted to explore the measures to counter these greenhouse gasses ( 4 , 6 , 7 ). When comparing previous research, this study provides three contributions to the existing literature. First, we examined the role of vegetation on air quality by overlapping the maps of vegetation and air quality. We compared the concentration of pollutants to which people in urban areas are exposed to the prescribed standards given by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This contribution provides the vegetation and greenhouse gasses concentration in different areas of Lahore, which helps to conclude that the enriched vegetation areas of Lahore can reduce the concentration of greenhouse gasses.

Secondly, this study emphasizes on the local community to examine their opinion regarding the vegetation and greenhouse gasses. Lastly, instead of previous studies, we used the combination of secondary and primary data analysis to draw a realistic conclusion. This study is helpful for urban management authorities, as it may assist them during policy making, such as launching new transportation structures and changing demographic and geographic positioning of cities.

However, the objectives of this study are given as follows:

• To classify the present vegetation covered in the case study area using NDVI technique.

• To analyze the air pollutants data for the Lahore built-up area from the respective agency and review their concentration levels according to NEQS.

• To review the effects of vegetation on air quality by overlapping the maps of air quality and vegetation developed using interpolation and the NDVI method.

• To recognize the perception of the local community regarding vegetation and greenhouse gasses.

Literature Review

The atmosphere is a dynamic and complex mixture of gasses that are essential to support the ecosystem on the earth. The atmosphere is composed of 78% of nitrogen (N), 21% of oxygen (O 2 ), 0.94% of argon (Ar), 0.002% of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), and a tiny amount of many trace gasses. The increasing human population on the earth and reduced plants or forests have disturbed the natural balance of these gasses ( 8 , 9 ). With rapid urbanization and industrialization, the addition of toxic materials, chemicals, and trace gasses in the atmosphere is contaminating the air quality and degrading the environment with a threat to life. These are released from fossil fuel, solid waste, organic compounds, and natural sources such as volcanism. Verma et al. ( 10 ), and many other environmentalists have indicated diseases or deaths of living organisms and degradation of the natural environment from toxic pollutants. Pollution is also caused by the release of toxins from homes or domestic incineration ( 11 ).

Atmospheric pollution has imposed a significant burden on the terrestrial environment at both regional and global levels. Pollution is a global issue because it does not have political and geographic boundaries ( 12 ). Still, urban areas worldwide are more affected than rural areas by this noxious matter ( 13 ). Visible effects of pollution were observed in London smog in 1952, and at present, all major cities of the developing world are facing such problems. Air pollution can significantly affect human and ecosystem health ( 14 ). Recent research indicates that global deaths directly or indirectly attributable to outdoor air pollution reached seven million in 2012 ( 15 ). This was equivalent to one in every eight deaths globally, making air pollution the most important environmental health risk worldwide ( 13 ).

Ambient Air Quality Standards (AAQS) for Air Pollutants

Environmental air quality standards (EAQS) are air quality index standards established and submitted through nationwide legal and regulatory procedures. Environmental quality regulations apply to atmospheric product quality primarily developed through medical, pharmacological, and statistical evidence ( 15 ). The ambient air quality norm is essentially a cap on the volume of the source of pollution in the soil. The criteria are intended to safeguard public wellbeing. They have already been determined to provide a buffer for those most at risk, such as youth and older people and those with preexisting health conditions. Looking around the globe, most AAQS contain a range of primary contaminants, frequently known as contaminant requirements: asbestos, particulates, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and lead. Whereas, governments do have guidelines for the same categories of air pollution, the requirements themselves are particular. The air quality index criteria set out in the WHO ( 13 ) are given in Table 1 .

Table 1 . Ambient Air Quality Standards (WHO, 2011–2013).

Role of Vegetation in the Mitigation of Air Pollution

Several aspects assess the overall effects of vegetation on emissions. For instance, trees can decrease temperatures and, as a result, reduce emission levels from different sources and thus can instantly eliminate pollution levels. Enhanced air temperatures can result in increased energy demand (and related emissions) during the summer (e.g., cool buildings), higher air pollution, and heat-related illnesses. Greenery, particularly trees, affects microclimates and cools the air by evaporating from plant evaporation, obstructing gusts of wind, and shading different surfaces. The regional environmental impacts on ambient temperature also include a portion of tree cover, the number of impermeable surfaces in the region, day period, thermal conductivity, affective humidity, and topography ( 16 ). The foliage will cool the atmosphere by many degree Celsius, with even a higher tree and shrub cover, leading to lower temperatures ( 17 ).

Data and Technique

Selection of case study area.

This research focuses on studying the role of vegetation in improving air quality by using NDVI and interpolation methods. So, the built-up area of Lahore as a case study was selected by considering the following aspects. First, Lahore is the capital city of Punjab province and the second largest metropolitan city of Pakistan, facing colossal air pollution problems ( 18 ). It is challenging to cover the whole city, so the built-up area of Lahore is selected, which spreads around 480 km 2 and has a population of ~10 million.

Second, the loss of trees and vegetation cover has been continuously multiplied in recent years due to mega development projects in Lahore ( 19 ). Third, Lahore is located in the northeast of Pakistan, which is the industrial hub of Pakistan, having a high concentration of pollution. Winds from all sides bring some pollutants to the city, but the primary sources are local industry and transport. Lahore's built-up area is shown in Figure 1 .

Figure 1 . Base map of the case study area, Lahore. Source: by researchers.

Landsat 8 OLI and TIRS were used for vegetation monitoring. Landsat 8 image has a 15-m resolution in a panchromatic band downloaded from the USGS website (earthexplore.usgs.gov). Landsat images are commonly used for land cover classification to calculate land distribution, vegetation covers, and changes over time. The downloaded image was clear, and the clouds did not cover it. Under the Pakistan Environmental Protection Act, 1997, the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency established National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) for Ambient Air, as given in Table 2 .

Table 2 . National Environmental Quality Standards.

Regression Analysis

After secondary analysis, we have focused on primary analysis, which is used for robust estimations. For this purpose, we have emphasized on regression analysis. To examine the impact of vegetation on air pollution and public health, this study uses vegetation data from the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), which covers the values from −1 to +1, where −1 indicates the absence of vegetation and +1 represents the presence of vegetation. The air quality and public health data are extracted from the World Development Indicators (WDI) and the World Health Organization (WHO). The data on air quality consist of CO 2 , NO x , SO x , and PM 2.5, which are used as air quality indicators. In comparison, public health data are extracted from the WHO and simulated and transformed into yearly data. We used control variables to avoid regression problems, urbanization, and industrialization, which are collected from the World Development Indicators. The urbanization unit is 100,000 people, whereas industrialization is value added in industry. The models of study are mentioned as follows:

Vegetation Coverage Is in Lahore

To address the first objective, we used the spatial analysis technique to investigate the vegetation cover in selected areas of Lahore. The vegetation cover in the built-up area of Lahore is classified for the research. The vegetation cover map generated using the NDVI tool is shown in Figure 2 . The map shows the vegetation cover in the built-up area of Lahore, classifying the concentration of vegetation in different localities as it can be seen that the areas in the vicinity of Township, Mansoora, Qainchi, General Hospital, Jamia Masjid Anwar-e-Madina, Himayat-e-Islam College, Shahi Qila, G.P.O. Chowk Lahore, Ali Hospital, Badshahi Mosque, and Daroghawala Chowk have the lowest vegetation cover, while the areas such as Raiwind Road, Model Town, Canal Bank Road, Fawara Chowk, and Mall Road have the highest rate of vegetation.

Figure 2 . Vegetation cover in the built-up area of Lahore.

Level of Concentration of Air Pollutants

Data on the concentration of air pollutants at 20 different points were taken from EPA, Punjab, Lahore. Table 3 shows the concentration of four pollutants, namely, NOx, CO, SO 2 , and PM 10 , at these points for 24-h mean observations. The concentrations of NOx, SO 2 , and PM 10 are given in micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m 3 ), while that of CO is in milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m 3 ).

Table 3 . Concentration of air pollutants in the built-up area of Lahore.

The NEQS for NOx are 80 μg/m3, and the data show that the value of NOx is within the NEQS limits at all the stations, as shown in Figure 3 . The NEQS for SO 2 are 120 mg/m 3 , and of the total test locations, the value of SO 2 is within the NEQS limits at 17 locations. The SO 2 concentration at all other test locations is visibly violating the NEQS, as shown in Figure 4 . The NEQS for CO are 5 mg/m 3 ; however, of the total test locations, the value of CO is within the NEQS limits at 16 locations, while the CO concentration at all other test locations is visibly violating the NEQS, as shown in Figure 5 . The NEQS for PM 10 are 150 μg/m 3 , and the value of PM 10 is within the NEQS limits at nine locations, while the PM 10 concentration at all other test locations is violating the NEQS. At the site of the Badshahi Mosque, it is incredibly high, as shown in Figure 6 .

Figure 3 . Comparison of NOx concentrations in Lahore with NEQS.

Figure 4 . Comparison of SO 2 concentrations in Lahore with NEQS.

Figure 5 . Comparison of CO concentrations in Lahore with NEQS.

Figure 6 . Comparison of PM 10 concentrations in Lahore with NEQS.

The Concentration of Nitrogen Dioxide

The G.I.S.-based air pollution maps are generated by using the I.D.W. tool. Figure 7 shows the concentration of nitrogen dioxide in the built-up area of Lahore. It describes that the lowest level of nitrogen dioxide ranges from 0.05 to 6.93, which is given in yellow color and the highest level ranges from 67.35 to 76.33 in red color. It can be seen that the areas such as the University of Lahore, Mansoora, Jamia Masjid Anwar-e-Madina, Himayat-e-Islam College, G.P.O. Chowk Lahore, Australia Masjid, U.E.T, and Daroghawala Chowk have the lowest values of nitrogen dioxide, while the areas such as General Hospital, Qainchi, Badshahi Mosque, and Shahi Qila have the highest values of nitrogen dioxide.

Figure 7 . Concentration of nitrogen dioxide.

The Concentration of Sulfur Dioxide

Figure 8 indicates the concentration of sulfur dioxide in the built-up area of Lahore. It shows that the lowest level of sulfur dioxide ranges from 0.05 to 14.84, which is given in yellow color and the highest level ranges from 136.84 to 157.18 in red color. It can be seen that the areas such as the University of Lahore, Mansoora, Jamia Masjid Anwar-e-Madina, Himayat-e-Islam College, G.P.O. Chowk Lahore, Australia Masjid, U.E.T, and Daroghawala Chowk have the lowest values of sulfur dioxide, while the areas such as General Hospital, Qainchi, Badshahi Mosque, and Shahi Qila have the highest values of sulfur dioxide.

Figure 8 . Concentration of sulfur dioxide.

The Concentration of Carbon Monoxide

The concentration of carbon monoxide in the built-up area of Lahore is shown in Figure 9 . It explains that the lowest level of carbon monoxide ranges from 1.5 to 2.53, which is given in yellow color and the highest level ranges from 13.56 to 16.01 in red color. It can be seen that the areas such as Thokar bypass, University of Lahore, Jamia Masjid Anwar-e-Madina, Himayat-e-Islam College, G.P.O. Chowk, Qartaba Chowk, Shadman Chowk, Fawara Chowk, Liberty Roundabout, Australia Masjid, U.E.T, Ali Hospital, and Daroghawala Chowk have the lowest values of carbon monoxide, while the areas such as General Hospital, Qainchi, Badshahi Mosque, and Shahi Qila have the highest values of carbon monoxide.

Figure 9 . Concentration of carbon monoxide.

The Concentration of Particulate Matter

Figure 10 depicts the concentration of particulate matter in the built-up area of Lahore. It explains that the lowest level of particulate matter ranges from 110.93 to 181.26, which is given in yellow color and the highest level ranges from 791.88 to 926.18 in red color. It can be seen that the areas such as Township Lahore, Jamia Masjid Anwar-e-Madina, Himayat-e-Islam College, Liberty Roundabout, Fawara Chowk, Shadman Chowk, G.P.O. Chowk Lahore, Australia Masjid, U.E.T, G.T Road, Ali Hospital, and Daroghawala Chowk have the lowest values of particulate matter, while the areas such as General Hospital, Qainchi, Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, and Town Hall have the highest values of particulate matter.

Figure 10 . Concentration of particulate matter.

Spatial Analysis of the Impact of Vegetation on Air Pollution

For finding the impacts of vegetation on air quality, the maps of vegetation cover and air quality are overlapped in G.I.S.

Impact of Vegetation on the Concentration of Nitrogen Dioxide

Figure 11 depicts the vegetation cover and concentration of nitrogen dioxide, which portrays that the concentration of NOx is highest (range from 45.33 to 76.45) at Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, General Hospital, and Qainchi, while it is below the highest value at other points. The map shows that the vegetation cover is less in the areas where the concentration of nitrogen dioxide is highest (i.e., Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, General Hospital, and Qainchi). Similarly, the points of Town Hall and Township (range from 33.97 to 45.33) lie in the second range of vegetation (i.e., 0.030–0.09), which means that less vegetation is present, while the points of Chauburji and Shadman Chowk with a medium concentration of NO x , lie in the third range of vegetation (i.e., 0.09–0.13), which shows that moderate vegetation is present. The remaining points with less NO x concentration lie in the areas with medium or maximum vegetation.

Figure 11 . Impact of vegetation on the concentration of nitrogen dioxide.

Impact of Vegetation on the Concentration of Sulfur Dioxide

Figure 12 shows the vegetation cover and concentration of sulfur dioxide, mentioning that the concentration of SO 2 is highest (range from 90.72 to 157.67) at Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, and General Hospital, while, it is below the highest value at other points. The vegetation cover is less where the concentration of sulfur dioxide is highest (i.e., Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, and General Hospital). Similarly, the points of Qainchi and Qartaba Chowk (range from 53.62 to 90.72) lie in the second range of vegetation (i.e., 0.030–0.09), which means that less vegetation is present, while the points of Shadman Chowk, Fawara Chowk, Liberty roundabout, and Township with a medium concentration of SO 2 lie in the third range of vegetation (i.e., 0.09–0.13), which shows that moderate vegetation is present. The areas with maximum vegetation coverage are secure from a higher concentration of sulfur dioxide.

Figure 12 . Impact of vegetation and the concentration of sulfur dioxide.

Impact of Vegetation on the Concentration of Carbon Monoxide

Figure 13 shows the vegetation cover and concentration of carbon monoxide. The concentration of CO is highest (range from 9.71 to 16.13) at Badshahi Mosque, while it is below the highest value at other points. The vegetation cover is less where the concentration of carbon monoxide is highest (i.e., Badshahi Mosque). Similarly, the points of Shahi Qila, Qainchi, and General Hospital (range from 3.24 to 9.71) lie in the second range of vegetation (i.e., 0.030–0.09), which means that less vegetation is present, while the points of Chauburji, Town Hall, Mansoora, and Township, with a medium concentration of CO, lie in the third range of vegetation (i.e., 0.09–0.13). The remaining areas with less carbon monoxide concentration have medium or maximum vegetation.

Figure 13 . Impact of vegetation and the concentration of carbon monoxide.

Impact of Vegetation on the Concentration of Particulate Matter

Figure 14 depicts the vegetation cover and concentration of particulate matter (PM 10 ), which shows that the concentration of PM 10 is highest (range from 445.80 to 930.00) at Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, and Town Hall, whereas the vegetation cover is less in these areas. Similarly, the points of General hospital, Qainchi, Mansoora, and University of Lahore (range from 202.65 to 445.80) lie in the second and third range of vegetation (i.e., 0.030–0.09 and 0.09–0.13), which means that less and medium vegetations are present, while the points of Chauburji, Qartaba Chowk, and Jamia Masjid Anwar-e-Madina with a medium concentration of PM 10 lie in the third range of vegetation (i.e., 0.09–0.13), which shows that moderate vegetation is present. The remaining points with less concentration are in the areas with medium or maximum vegetation.

Figure 14 . Impact of vegetation and the concentration of particulate matter.

The analysis shows that the highest polluted areas, including Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, General Hospital, Mansoora, and Town Hall, have the lowest vegetation levels. The areas with less pollution concentration have visibly more vegetation cover, such as Mall Road and the University of Lahore.

Perception of the Local Community Regarding Vegetation and Greenhouse Gasses

As the research deals with the relation between air pollution and vegetation, a user perception survey was conducted regarding the vegetation in an area, air quality, leading causes of vegetation loss, and main causes of higher concentration of greenhouse gasses. The data analysis is performed in light of field surveys through which necessary information of the respondents, information regarding parks, and their opinion about vegetation cover and air quality of the area are collected. Hence, 100 questionnaire-based interviews using a simple random sampling technique were conducted in the study area. The detailed analysis is illustrated in the following sections. The results in Figure 15 show that of 100 respondents, 48% think that they do have enough vegetation in their area, while 52% think that they do not have enough vegetation. The results in Figure 16 show that of 100 respondents, 30% think that the overall vegetation in their area has become better than last year, 42% think that the vegetation is about the same, while 22% rate the overall vegetation as little worse.

Figure 15 . Availability of vegetation in the area.

Figure 16 . Rating of the overall vegetation compared with last year.

In contrast, 6% think that the vegetation coverage area is reducing rapidly. The results in Figure 17 show that of 100 respondents, 20% think that the overall air quality in their area becomes better compared with last year, 41% think that the air quality is about the same, while 25% rate the overall air quality as little worse. In contrast, 14% think that the air quality becomes much worse. As far as the impact of air pollution on public health, we have conducted a survey from the local community. The survey findings are reported in Figure 18 , which mentions that 48% are in favor of the environmental degradation process having harmful impacts on public health. The result is surprising as 52% have denied it. The findings contradict the previous literature, such as Sarwar and Alsaggaf ( 4 ). However, the results open a window to explore the other significant factors harmful to public health.

Figure 17 . Rating of the overall air quality compared with last year.

Figure 18 . Health problems caused by air pollution compared with last year.

According to the respondents, the leading causes of lack of vegetation in their neighborhood are commercialization, development of orange line, construction of roads, development of new housing schemes, development of new projects, conversion of vegetated land into residential areas, cutting off trees, invasion and succession, increase in vehicles, lack of awareness about the importance of vegetation for the health of the community, lack of interest and attention of relevant authorities toward the improvement in vegetation, and lack of proper maintenance and monitoring.

Regression Estimations

The regression estimations are reported in Table 4 , mentioning that higher vegetation reduces the carbon and PM 2.5. Industrialization increases the CO, NO, and SO, which proposes that higher industrialization is responsible for polluting the air quality. The empirics of urbanization show positive and significant coefficients for CO and PM 2.5, which confirms that the increase in urbanization is also responsible for the air quality issues. The reason can be multifold: (i) to increase the urban land, it is required to remove the forest or agricultural land, reduce the green shades, and decrease the greenhouse gasses (GHG) inhalation process and (ii) in urban areas, the electricity consumption increases at a higher pace than in rural areas ( 4 , 7 ), which triggers the GHG.

Table 4 . Regression estimation.

As for public health, we found a negative and significant coefficient for vegetation, reporting that higher green protection reduces the death rates caused by air pollution. The higher vegetation helps reduce the environmental externalities, which significantly reduces the death rates. Previous research has reported similar findings, such as Bermudez et al. ( 20 ) and Ibrahiem ( 21 ), confirming the relationship between air quality and public health.

This study addresses the research and policy aspects of the interactions between vegetation and air pollutants in urban areas. The research objective was to classify the existing vegetation cover in Lahore using the NDVI technique. The spatial analysis of vegetation cover results shows that Township, Mansoora, Qainchi, General Hospital, Jamia Masjid Anwar-e-Madina, Himayat-e-Islam College, Shahi Qila, G.P.O. Chowk Lahore, Ali Hospital, Badshahi Mosque, and Daroghawala Chowk have the lowest vegetation cover. The objective of the research was to compare the concentrations with NEQs. The comparison of the concentrations of NO x , SO 2 , CO, and PM 10 with NEQS shows that the value of NO x is within the NEQS limits at all the stations, while the value of SO 2 is within the NEQS limits at 17 locations and the SO 2 concentration at all other test locations is violating the NEQS. Of the total test locations, the value of CO is within the NEQS limits at 16 locations. However, the value of PM10 is within the NEQS limits at nine locations only, and the PM10 concentration is violating the NEQS at all other test locations. The concentrations of SO 2 , CO, and PM10 are exceptionally high at the site of the Badshahi Mosque. The spatial analysis of air pollution shows that the areas in the vicinity of General Hospital, Qainchi, Badshahi Mosque, and Shahi Qila have the highest concentration of nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and PM10, while at the site of Town Hall, the PM10 concentration is high.

The vegetation cover compared with the concentrations of NOx, SO 2 , CO, and PM 10 shows that areas such as Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, General Hospital, and Qainchi have less vegetation because air pollutants are high at that sites. The analysis shows that the highest polluted areas, including Badshahi Mosque, Shahi Qila, General Hospital, Mansoora, and Town Hall, have the lowest vegetation levels. The areas with less pollution concentration have visibly more vegetation cover, such as Mall Road and the University of Lahore.

Finding out perceptions of people living in the particular area (selected as a case study) helps assess the challenges and root causes of the problem so that policies could be developed for adequate vegetation protection and the comfort of people living in those areas. The researchers surveyed the case study area and acquired residents about the core issues because the neighborhood lacks vegetation. The first which came across was the commercialization of the land. Due to rapid urbanization in Lahore city, most of the agricultural land has been converted into commercial land; apart from the tingling of prime land, many problems like loss of biodiversity water scarcity have been originated. Mega housing projects and development projects are running side by side, which have polluted the city's atmosphere. The residents were much concerned about their city. They want local authorities and government to take action regarding immense pollution. It has been examined that the leading causes of pollution in Lahore now are the excessive use of automobiles as the city is expanding, and many people try daily on their vehicles to reach the inner city. Smoke and burning of waste in the city center have also been noticed, causing massive loss to our environment. Development projects, commercial activities, transportation problems, traffic congestion, deforestation, no buffer zone for industries, lack of green spaces, usage of owned cars, uneven road infrastructure, and less vegetation cover are causes of pollution in the city.

The following measures are recommended to improve the vegetation cover and air quality in Lahore city: implement and promulgate national and provincial environmental standards and policies and standards to ensure the uniformity of rules and regulations; coordination with regional organizations, cooperation and sharing of good practices, and monitoring and evaluation of environmental programs affecting multiple regions; environmental laws practiced in all the country's regions, particularly at national and provincial levels; local environmental agencies below the provincial level that can more effectively manage certain environmental management functions; strengthen national regulations and deal with tasks related to environmental regulations, such as license violations and fines; design and implement action plans and strategies to meet national environmental standards at the municipal, regional, and provincial levels; promote and facilitate public participation to promote more excellent political and cultural representation and transparency in the decision-making process; monitor and disseminate information about the environmental quality, such as the air and water quality, per national standards; and monitor local environmental issues and disseminate information to constituents and stakeholders. As far as the vegetation and public health are concerned, the authorities have to avoid cutting green shields that draft the urban plans. On the one hand, it will help achieve a sustainable environment, while on the other hand, it will minimize public health issues.

Data Availability Statement

The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary files, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding author/s.

Author Contributions

MK conceived and drafted the manuscript. KN developed the research design and methodology. CH and ZH developed the theory, literature review, and finalized the article. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher's Note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Acknowledgments

CH acknowledges the research fund from The National Social Science Fund of China (21BGL047) for this research.

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Keywords: air quality, G.I.S, Pakistan, Lahore, vegetation

Citation: Khan MK, Naeem K, Huo C and Hussain Z (2022) The Nexus Between Vegetation, Urban Air Quality, and Public Health: An Empirical Study of Lahore. Front. Public Health 10:842125. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.842125

Received: 23 December 2021; Accepted: 21 March 2022; Published: 26 April 2022.

Reviewed by:

Copyright © 2022 Khan, Naeem, Huo and Hussain. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Kashif Naeem, kashif.naeem@itu.edu.pk ; Chunhui Huo, robinhch@126.com

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Making a Difference for Air Quality in Pakistan

Air pollution kills hundreds of thousands of people every year in Pakistan, yet no one was monitoring air quality. Now a group of citizen scientists is prompting change.

SCISTARTER BLOG

Air quality impacts our health, our quality of life and even the length of our lives. Most people don’t think about what’s in the air they breathe — but perhaps they should.

That’s the driving force behind the  Pakistan Air Quality Initiative . The citizen science project wants to let people know what’s in their air. While living in Beijing, a city known for poor air quality, Abid Omar became curious about the air that he and the people around him were inhaling every day. He brought this curiosity with him to Pakistan.

Omar bought several air quality monitors and soon realized that the air quality around him in the city of Karachi was notably poor. In fact, it was bad enough that in other countries the government would have shut down schools and kept people inside. With further research, Omar realized that Pakistan was suffering from a lack of data. The most recent studies conducted were outdated and insufficient. The researchers had only targeted the cities of  Karachi  and  Lahore , and they dated back to 2008 and 2011. The study focusing on Lahore used only two weeks of data. Omar realized that no one, not even the government, was monitoring Pakistan’s air quality.

Yet there was ample evidence that air pollution was causing serious health problems. The  medical journal  Lancet  reported in 2015  that more than 310,000 deaths in Pakistan each year can be tied to poor air quality. That’s 22 percent of all annual deaths in Pakistan. On average, people living in Pakistan have their life expectancy reduced by 2.6 years due to poor air quality, with that number reaching up to roughly 5 years in the heavily-populated Punjab region, according to the  Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago .

Omar’s organization found that none of the cities they studied in Pakistan met the air quality levels set out by the National Environmental Quality Standards. And those standards suggest that the city of Lahore had 41 days where air quality should have been considered “Hazardous” (the worst possible ranking).

RELATED: Building DIY Air Quality Monitors

If better information was available and accessible, Omar thought, then people could protect themselves. They’d know which days to pass on their morning jog or wear a face mask outside. The information could save their lives.

What’s in the Air?

Using  AirVisual monitors , Omar organized the  Pakistan Air Quality Initiative  as an air quality monitoring network. “This process would not have been possible without the help of volunteers,” he says. “Everyone was critical in locating areas to set up air monitors and setting them up. The investment required for each volunteer is fairly low. Air monitors only need to be set up. [However], the data that they provide has been paying off in numerous ways.”

Omar used to worry that the lack of action could make Pakistan’s air quality the worst in the world. And in November of 2017, that’s exactly what happened. The city of Lahore was announced to have the worst quality of air in the world, according to data collected by Omar’s organization. The levels of dangerous particulates was 30 times higher than what the Pakistani government considers safe.

Then, in the same month, citizens brought an air quality case to Pakistan’s high court. However, the government continued to deny that air quality was a problem for the region  — until data collected by the Pakistan Air Quality Initiative was used as evidence.

As a result, the government declared a national emergency for air quality in Pakistan. That change helped prompt action. The government formed a Smog Commission designed to investigate the causes of air pollution in Pakistan and to attempt to reduce smog levels.

While the government begins to address air quality in Pakistan, Omar’s organization is still hard at work to achieve their goals:

• To monitor the air quality in major urban areas of Pakistan
• To provide open and public access to local air quality data
• To create social awareness regarding air quality and air pollution
• To cooperatively provide a platform, tools and knowledge for a well-informed society

What Pakistanis and People Everywhere Can Do

Forty air quality monitors are now installed in Pakistan, but it’s not enough. Ideally, hundreds of monitors would be used to collect sufficient data. Through platforms like Facebook, Twitter and the AirVisual app, the Pakistan Air Quality Initiative is making strides to access hourly information regarding local air quality.

A curious and concerned citizen led to the group’s initial founding. Now, an educated and aware public is needed to make these necessary changes regarding air quality. Volunteers have been critical to the work that Omar’s organization has done and will continue to do. By getting involved, volunteers have the opportunity to become more informed of these issues and to become an air quality ambassador for their own community.

Anyone can help monitor pollution in their home and community.  Air Visual Pro  will let you detect and visualize air quality levels. And a citizen science project called  CanAirIo  actually empowers people to build their own air quality monitors.

Featured image: Air pollution in Pakistan is among the worst in the world. But community monitoring efforts could finally be leading to change. (Credit: Pakistan Air Quality Initiative)

About the Author

Molly schools.

Molly Schools is a graduate student pursuing her PhD at Temple University in Philadelphia. Her research studies the genetics , evolution and ecology of a group lizards in the Caribbean. Many species in the Caribbean are threatened by habitat loss and her research will allow for more informed conservation efforts targeting these lizards and other similar species. In her limited free time Molly enjoys any activity that will get her outside such as hiking, kayaking and camping.

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At his house on busy Mall Road in Lahore, environmental lawyer Rafay Alam runs three air purifiers around the clock, keeps his windows shut and stuffs towels into the gaps under his doors. Some winter days, when the city's smog is particularly bad, "I don't send my daughter to school," he admits. "I am not going to risk permanent damage to her lungs." Pakistan's second-largest city is choking on smog, driven in part by smoke from bricks kiln and steel mills, burning of rice stubble and garbage, growing numbers of vehicles on the road and large-scale losses of trees as the expanding city makes way for new roads and buildings, residents say. Many in the city of 11 million complain of headaches and burning eyes and throats as air pollution levels this winter have on some days hit five times the legal limit, according to a global air quality index that many in Lahore check via the AirVisual phone app. Alam thinks it's time for the government to declare a public health emergency on the worst days, when the air is full of dust and pollutants that can cause health issues including asthma, lung damage, bronchial infections and heart problems. "The air pollution in Lahore is bad throughout the year, but in the winter there is temperature inversion where a layer of warm air is prevented from rising and it traps all the pollutants below it, which renders them visible," he said. Lahore, once known as the Garden City but now choked with cars, regularly figures on air quality indexes as as one of the most polluted cities in the world - and many of the pollutants are also drivers of climate change.

Prime Minister Imran Khan's government, which came to power four months ago, has restarted air quality monitoring in Lahore after the previous government ceased it two years ago, said Malik Amin Aslam, the prime minister's climate change advisor. During that two-year period, air quality monitoring stations in the province weren't working because of a lack of funding and capacity, Alam said. The prime minister, who grew up in Lahore, said he sees tackling the city's smog problem as a priority. "It is a serious issue that must be addressed," Khan told his cabinet. In November, the Lahore High Court ordered the Punjab provincial government to implement recommendations of the Smog Commission, set up by the court in 2017 to look at the drivers of smog and find ways to reduce them. Those included curbing emissions from factories, closing brick kilns that fail to use fuel-efficient technology, and fining polluting vehicles and farmers burning rice stubble in the winter. The commission also ordered the planting of trees in urban areas and efforts to spread environmental awareness in schools.

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Monitors and Meetings Aslam said the government now has a team traveling around Lahore reading the city's air quality monitors, with the data feeding into the city's own air quality index. That index, updated daily, is posted for public use on the Environmental Protection Department's website. Since coming into office, Khan has organised meetings with brick kiln owners and won a two-month winter shutdown of factories in 12 districts, including Lahore. The government has also pushed brick kiln owners to shift to cleaner technology, offering loans to make the switch, as well as issuing fines for kilns that operate using the dirtiest technologies, such as burning used tires. The Environment Protection Department has fined farmers who burn crop stubble - a traditional practice - and is looking at promoting zero tillage farming as an alternative, though making the switch will be costly for farmers, Aslam admitted. As well, the government is considering setting higher emissions standards for vehicles - but warned the switch could make petrol "more expensive for consumers as a result", Aslam said. The Environmental Protection Department said the level of smog pollution was lower this year than last in Lahore because of anti-smog measures already underway.

But Alam said monitors installed in his house continue to show hazardous levels in his neighbourhood. "It's not just brick kilns and farmers who are causing air pollution. Pakistan uses the most polluted fuel in the world – tackling this problem will require a tremendous change in the energy and transport sectors of Pakistan," he said. He said the country needed a nation-wide system of air quality monitors in its cities to better understand what is happening and drive action. Cutting smog would have other benefits as well, he said. "By reducing greenhouse gases that cause air pollution you are also addressing climate change. The two are linked". Abid Omar, who founded the Pakistan Air Quality Initiative, a non-profit group that publishes data about air pollution and its health impacts, agreed that a broad approach is needed. "We have to reduce air pollution at the source, be it industry, agriculture, urban waste or transportation. This will require time, money and planning," he admitted.

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As Lahore chokes on winter smog, Pakistan moves to cut air pollution

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Efforts to crack down on pollution from agricultural burning, dirty factories, brick kilns and vehicles are underway

By Rina Saeed Khan

LAHORE, Pakistan, Jan 7 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - At his house on busy Mall Road in Lahore, environmental lawyer Rafay Alam runs three air purifiers around the clock, keeps his windows shut and stuffs towels into the gaps under his doors.

Some winter days, when the city's smog is particularly bad, "I don't send my daughter to school," he admits. "I am not going to risk permanent damage to her lungs."

Pakistan's second-largest city is choking on smog, driven in part by smoke from bricks kiln and steel mills, burning of rice stubble and garbage, growing numbers of vehicles on the road and large-scale losses of trees as the expanding city makes way for new roads and buildings, residents say.

Many in the city of 11 million complain of headaches and burning eyes and throats as air pollution levels this winter have on some days hit five times the legal limit, according to a global air quality index that many in Lahore check via the  AirVisual phone app.

Alam thinks it's time for the government to declare a public health emergency on the worst days, when the air is full of dust and pollutants that can cause health issues including asthma, lung damage, bronchial infections and heart problems.

"The air pollution in Lahore is bad throughout the year, but in the winter there is temperature inversion where a layer of warm air is prevented from rising and it traps all the pollutants below it, which renders them visible," he said.

Lahore, once known as the Garden City but now choked with cars, regularly figures on air quality indexes as as one of the most polluted cities in the world - and many of the pollutants are also drivers of climate change.

Prime Minister Imran Khan's government, which came to power four months ago, has restarted air quality monitoring in Lahore after the previous government ceased it two years ago, said Malik Amin Aslam, the prime minister's climate change advisor.

During that two-year period, air quality monitoring stations in the province weren't working because of a lack of funding and capacity, Alam said.

The prime minister, who grew up in Lahore, said he sees tackling the city's smog problem as a priority.

"It is a serious issue that must be addressed," Khan told his cabinet.

In November, the Lahore High Court ordered the Punjab provincial government to implement recommendations of the Smog Commission, set up by the court in 2017 to look at the drivers of smog and find ways to reduce them.

Those included curbing emissions from factories, closing brick kilns that fail to use fuel-efficient technology, and fining polluting vehicles and farmers burning rice stubble in the winter.

The commission also ordered the planting of trees in urban areas and efforts to spread environmental awareness in schools.

MONITORS AND MEETINGS

Aslam said the government now has a team traveling around Lahore reading the city's air quality monitors, with the data feeding into the city's own air quality index.

That index, updated daily, is posted for public use on the Environmental Protection Department's website.

Since coming into office, Khan has organised meetings with brick kiln owners and won a two-month winter shutdown of factories in 12 districts, including Lahore.

The government has also pushed brick kiln owners to shift to cleaner technology, offering loans to make the switch, as well as issuing fines for kilns that operate using the dirtiest technologies, such as burning used tires.

The Environment Protection Department has fined farmers who burn crop stubble - a traditional practice - and is looking at promoting zero tillage farming as an alternative, though making the switch will be costly for farmers, Aslam admitted.

As well, the government is considering setting higher emissions standards for vehicles - but warned the switch could make petrol "more expensive for consumers as a result", Aslam said.

The Environmental Protection Department said the level of smog pollution was lower this year than last in Lahore because of anti-smog measures already underway.

The air quality (PM2.5 µg/m³) in #Lahore is now worse than the next 5 cities in the Major City Ranking - COMBINED! As #pollution season begins, stay informed of current conditions & necessary precautions with the free AirVisual app. The only pollution data app for #Pakistan pic.twitter.com/AzJTohRLL6 — AirVisual (@MyAirVisual) October 31, 2018

But Alam said monitors installed in his house continue to show hazardous levels in his neighbourhood.

"It's not just brick kilns and farmers who are causing air pollution. Pakistan uses the most polluted fuel in the world – tackling this problem will require a tremendous change in the energy and transport sectors of Pakistan," he said.

He said the country needed a nation-wide system of air quality monitors in its cities to better understand what is happening and drive action.

Cutting smog would have other benefits as well, he said.

"By reducing greenhouse gases that cause air pollution you are also addressing climate change. The two are linked".

Abid Omar, who founded the   Pakistan Air Quality Initiative , a non-profit group that publishes data about air pollution and its health impacts, agreed that a broad approach is needed.

"We have to reduce air pollution at the source, be it industry, agriculture, urban waste or transportation. This will require time, money and planning," he admitted.

(Reporting by Rina Saeed Khan ; editing by Laurie Goering : (Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, climate change, resilience, women's rights, trafficking and property rights. Visit http://news.trust.org/climate)

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Pakistan Develops a National Clean Air Plan Using the Country’s First Air Pollutant Inventory

Pakistan faces some of the worst air pollution in the world. Air pollution shortens Pakistani lives by over 4 years on average, and by seven years in some areas. The country is also currently facing the devastating effects of climate change head on, including flooding in August so dire that one-third of the country was fully submerged , affecting more than 33 million people.

“The Pakistani people are facing the monsoon on steroids, the relentless impact of epic levels of rain and flooding. The climate catastrophe has killed more than 1,000 people with many more injured,” said United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres at the time.

Pakistan is working to mitigate these realities with policy and planning, including a National Clean Air Plan being developed by the Ministry of the Environment with support from the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) , the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) , and Clean Air Asia . This plan sets targets for air pollution concentration, identifies actions to mitigate air pollution, and outlines a plan for coordinating action on air quality management. 

Development of the plan has also resulted in the country’s first national air pollutant inventory, which includes the first-ever quantification of black carbon and other air pollutants at both the national and the provincial scale.

This plan outlines the need to focus on five sectors at the national scale: 

• converting wood stoves and biomass cooking into cleaner and more fuel-efficient cooking and heating methods; 
• removing the worst-emitting vehicles and implementing Euro fuel standards in the transport sector;
• stopping open burning in the agricultural sector; 
• stopping open burning of waste; 
• and properly regulating industry emissions. 

“Implementing the actions that deliver the biggest benefits for air pollution leads to a reduction in greenhouse gases. Our analysis is specifically focused on reducing particulate matter emissions and other air pollutants. In doing that, we’re also making industry more efficient by switching to more electric vehicles, and by reducing burning in agricultural waste and in the residential sector, you also reduce greenhouse gases and short-lived climate pollutants,” said Chris Malley, Senior Researcher, Stockholm Environment Institute.

Given Pakistan’s political structures, it was necessary to examine these plans on the national level and then also to assess the county’s eight provinces to determine which measures each one needed. So a technical team was established, with both national and regional representatives who were all trained on the Low Emission Analysis Platform-Integrated Benefit Calculator (LEAP IBC).

Importantly, it became clear that in each of the provinces, different sectors often contributed to the problem of air pollution in different ways and on different scales — urban regions struggle with waste management, for example, while more rural areas struggle with the burning of  agricultural waste.

As a result of both of these factors, the National Clean Air Plan delegates its implementation to the provinces. Because of this, the CCAC has funded a two-year follow up project supporting the provinces to develop their own clean air plans.

“The analysis that the CCAC funded in this project shows that those clean air action plans have to be bespoke, because the major sources differ between different provinces and the effectiveness of the measures differ,” said Malley.

This project will use the same strategy of technical assessments developed with the LEAP-IBC tool to develop a plan that reflects the co-benefits each province will get from taking action on air pollution. These co-benefits are a way to build political support for the plan and to save resources in cash-strapped local governments. 

Malley points out that working on a provincial level also means access to local data, since every province in Pakistan has their own statistical authorities who can help tailor assessments to local conditions to get a better assessment and a more robust evidence base.

Pakistan is also a signatory to the Global Methane Pledge , a voluntary commitment to reduce global methane emissions by at least 30 per cent by 2030, which could eliminate over 0.2˚C of warming by 2050. Pakistan’s Clean Air Plan establishes a variety of ways that the country can enhance its methane emissions reductions, including leak detection and repair in the oil and gas sector, better manure management in the agricultural sector, and improved waste management. With additional funding and support, Pakistan has a significant opportunity to reduce methane emissions. 

According to the CCAC’s Global Methane Assessment , human-caused methane emissions can be reduced by up to 45 per cent this decade which would avoid nearly 0.3°C of global warming by 2045. More than half of emissions come from human activities in three sectors: fossil fuels (35 per cent), waste (20 per cent) and agriculture (40 per cent). 

Pakistan is building off of its ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions , which commits the country to a target of reducing projected emissions by 50 per cent by 2030, conditional on international support. To accomplish this, Pakistan plans to move to 60 per cent renewable energy, including converting 30 per cent of its vehicles to electric and banning imported coal. The country has also outlined plans to convert to zig-zag brick kiln technology to mitigate SLCPs: brick kilns are recognized as one of the largest sources of black carbon contributing to 20 per cent of total world-wide emissions along with iron and steel production. They also aim to implement Euro-5 standard fuel.

The plan further committed to a re-evaluation and revision of Pakistan’s Clean Air Program, including by using the LEAP-IBC tool to assess the multiple climate and health benefits of reducing air pollution, the catalyst for the CCAC’s work in the country.  

“Pakistan has done a huge amount to move forward what it said it was going to do in its NDC to integrate air pollution and climate change,” said Chris Malley. “Our goal was to build an assessment and to increase the capacity of the team in Pakistan to be able to understand the air pollution benefits and their climate change plans and how they can alleviate the terrible impacts of air pollution while at the same time achieving their climate goals — and we’ve done that with this team at the Ministry of Climate Change.

“The CCAC and the SEI tries to undertake these projects in a way that leaves capacity within the national institutions who can take on these projects and take on these initiatives after the project end stage. In Pakistan, in terms of the coordination and institutional understanding of the need to integrate climate and clean air I think the CCAC has done a very good job in making sure there is the capacity there and that this initiative will go forward.”

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Role of ambient air pollution in asthma spread among various population groups of Lahore City: a case study

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• Published: 26 February 2022
• Volume 30 , pages 8682–8697, ( 2023 )

Cite this article

• Rabia Aslam 1 ,
• Faiza Sharif 1 ,
• Mujtaba Baqar 1 ,
• Abdul-Sattar Nizami 1 &
• Uzma Ashraf 2  

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Air pollution levels rise as a result of industrial and vehicular emissions, epidemiological issues such as asthma become more prevalent in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan and cause adverse public health effects. Many studies explored the association between air pollutants and frequency of asthma hospital visits, although their effects are unclear. This study examined the link between air pollution, asthma, and socioeconomic and demographic factors. A questionnaire survey was administered among four age groups (15–25, 25–45, 45–60, and over 60 years old) in public and private hospitals of Lahore city. Daily average concentrations of five air pollutants including carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), ozone (O 3 ), and particulate matter (PM 2.5 and PM 10 ) were recorded at ten fixed air monitoring sites in Lahore city. There were favorable connections between outpatient department (OPD) asthma visits (64%) and levels of outdoor air quality during winter season throughout the study period. The correlation between 1, 29, and 370 asthma patients and average daily air pollution levels found that the condition was more prevalent in females (53%) than males (47%). There was a significant correlation between PM 10 exposure and asthma OPD visits in the city ( p 0.001), as well as the elevated PM 10 levels were substantially linked with OPD asthma visits over the winter season in the city. The hazard index (HI) for all adult population was estimated 0.001132. The study’s findings indicate that exposure to ambient air pollution is a significant predictor of asthma hospital visits, particularly among the elderly. Strategies can be developed by policymakers in response to the worrying situation of allergic disease asthma in industrial cities due to air pollution.

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Rabia Aslam, Faiza Sharif, Mujtaba Baqar & Abdul-Sattar Nizami

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Aslam, R., Sharif, F., Baqar, M. et al. Role of ambient air pollution in asthma spread among various population groups of Lahore City: a case study. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30 , 8682–8697 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-19086-1

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Why does South Asia have the world’s worst air pollution?

Smog-ridden cities in Bangladesh, Pakistan and India had the poorest air quality last year, says report.

In 2023, Bangladesh recorded the worst air quality of 134 countries monitored by the Swiss climate group, IQAir. Pakistan and India were close behind, with the report showing that South Asia suffers from the worst pollution in the world overall.

Here are some insights from the report and what it tells us about the South Asian countries’ governments.

Keep reading

Thick smog shuts down pakistan’s lahore, sickens tens of thousands, ‘like breathing poison’: children in india’s delhi hit hard by smog, in lahore, it’s that toxic, smoggy time of year again, bangladesh capital most polluted as toxic smog engulfs south asian cities, what does the 2023 world air quality report say.

The report provides an overview of PM2.5 air quality data from 7,812 cities across the world. PM2.5 refers to fine particulate matter which is 2.5 microns or smaller in diametre and is dangerous because it can pass deep into the human respiratory tract. These particles are released during natural events such as dust storms and wildfires, or can be caused by human activities such as coal burning or agricultural work.

According to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, average annual levels of PM2.5 should not surpass 5 micrograms per cubic metre. Only 10 countries listed in the report comply with this standard, however. They include French Polynesia – which has the cleanest air in the world according to the report – New Zealand, Finland and Estonia, among others.

Bangladesh’s PM2.5 levels stand at 79.9 micrograms per cubic metre, nearly 16 times higher than the WHO recommends. Pakistan scored 73.7 while India’s air had 54.4 micrograms of PM2.5 particles per cubic metre on average over the last year.

How do South Asian cities rank in terms of air quality?

Within each of the countries monitored by IQAir, air quality can vary hugely from city to city.

Begusarai, the industrial and financial capital of India’s Bihar, with refineries and power stations, had a whopping 118.9 micrograms of PM2.5 particles per cubic metre on average in 2023. New Delhi had 92.7, while Dhaka in Bangladesh had 80.2 and Pakistan’s smog-ridden Lahore recorded an average of 99.5.

Eighty-three cities in India have air with more than 10 times the recommended limit of 5 micrograms per cubic metre.

According to the IQAir report, this compares with San Juan in Puerto Rico, the least polluted city in the world, with only 2.7 micrograms of PM2.5 particles per cubic metre on average in 2023. Wellington in New Zealand comes second, with 3.1 micrograms and Canberra in Australia has 3.8 micrograms.

Why is the air quality in South Asian cities so poor?

The report found that poor air quality in South Asia is often down to “brick kiln and other industrial emissions, agricultural waste burning, and cremation practices”. It added that the burning of solid fuel for cooking and heating, especially during colder months, adds to the air pollution.

In Bangladesh , there are an estimated 8,000 brick kilns , some of which operate illegally. Plastic rubbish incineration and vehicle fumes also contribute to the deteriorating air quality. During crop burning season, smoke from India, Nepal and Pakistan can also drift into Bangladesh.

Northern India and Delhi have particularly poor air quality because of biomass burning – or the burning of wood or crop wastes to make fuel, coal burning and vehicle emissions. Annual crop burning – whereby farmers in India and Pakistan burn plant residue after harvesting rice to prepare the fields for wheat plantation – is also a contributor to air pollution.

The geography of South Asia also plays a role in the accumulation of air pollution. Pollutants emitted from across the Indo-Gangetic Plain, which comprises Bangladesh, a large part of eastern Pakistan, most of northern and eastern India, and the south of Nepal, mix with pollutants brought into the region by winds blowing in from the coast. They then become trapped by the Himalayas bordering the north.

What is the effect of poor air in Asia?

The Environmental Research Group at Imperial College London published a review in April 2023 following decades of scientific research about air pollution.

The review found connections between air pollution and the health of newborn babies in the first weeks of life, low birth weight, miscarriages and stillbirths. It also found that early exposure to air pollution can hinder development.

According to the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) published by the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago (EPIC) in August 2023, the average Indian’s life expectancy is reduced by 5.3 years due to PM2.5 pollution. In New Delhi, life expectancy is cut by 10 years.

The report found that an average Pakistani would live for 3.9 years longer if air quality met the WHO guidelines.

Besides the health effects, air pollution in Pakistan and India affects everyday activities such as education and business.

In early November 2023, Pakistan’s Punjab province, engulfed in a blanket of smog, declared an emergency in Lahore, Gujranwala and Hafizabad and all public places were closed . In Delhi, India’s capital territory, schools were shuttered and construction was halted due to dangerous levels of air pollution at the same time. Later in November 2023, face masks were made mandatory in Lahore.

What can be done to remedy South Asia’s air quality crisis?

The IQAir report recommends that governments invest in renewable energy initiatives, introduce incentives for cleaner vehicles, improve infrastructure to enable better pedestrian mobility and ban agricultural burning practices.

The report particularly highlighted a lack of government-operated air quality monitoring stations in South Asia. Some 96 percent of stations reporting air quality data in Lahore and Peshawar in Pakistan, as well as Dhaka in Bangladesh, were not affiliated with the countries’ governments.

The IQAir report concluded that while this shows that private residents and organisations want to document and monitor air pollution levels, governments are not taking responsibility for doing so.

Some attempts have been made by South Asian governments to curb air pollution. Coal burning was banned in Delhi’s National Capital Region (NCR) in January 2023, for example.

Older vehicles were banned in Delhi in 2018, resulting in a 35 percent decrease in the number of cars on the road, according to the IQAir report. However, in November 2023, a collaborative project between the Delhi government and the Indian Institute Of Technology Kanpur showed that vehicle emissions remained the largest contributor to air pollution in the city.

Pakistan’s Punjab province has banned crop burning and launched public transport projects in a bid to get private vehicles off the road. However, despite the ban, farmers continue to burn crops illegally, possibly because alternatives are unaffordable.

India and Pakistan have turned to cloud seeding to prompt artificial rain in order to curb smog. Cloud seeding is a weather modification technique that uses ground-based generators or aircraft to allow clouds to be modified with a compound to form ice crystals that facilitate the formation of rainwater droplets.

The caretaker minister for the environment in Pakistan’s Punjab, Bilal Afzal, told the Guardian that cloud seeding carried out in Lahore had been a success. While air quality in Lahore had improved with a small amount of rain, however, it did not last for more than a few days as the air pollution went back to its usual levels afterwards.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in Bangladesh announced in January that it intends to use a brick kiln tracker, which will use remote sensing technology to identify harmful brick kilns and to help improve enforcement.