By Minahil Makhdoom
ISLAMABAD: The air quality of the federal capital was recorded healthy on Tuesday as islooites witnessed first clearing in the sky after repeated days of polluted air due to increased ratio of pollutants since February amid persistent dry weather. A Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA) official stated that the average ratio of particulate matter of 2.5 microns also PM 2.5 was recorded below safer limits. It was the most hazardous air pollutant causing serious respiratory chronic diseases and premature deaths. PM2.5 was recorded 16.43 micrograms per cubic meter in Islamabad, which is much lower than the National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) of 35 micrograms and the World Health Organization (WHO) standard of 20 micrograms per cubic meter.
The air quality data revealed the presence of 19.43 micrograms sulphur dioxide and 13.73 micrograms nitrogen dioxide per cubic meter against the NEQS of 120 micrograms and 80 micrograms per cubic meter respectively. During the month of February, average PM 2.5 ratio was recorded 50.32 microgrammes per cubic meter whereas SO2 was 36.3 microgrammes and NO2 24.8 per cubic meters.
According to the EPA official, prevailing dry weather and increased vehicular emissions were the main reasons for the bad air quality, caused due to presence of PM2.5 above the NEQS limit. It was the most health damaging environmental pollutant causing chronic respiratory diseases and premature deaths as it could easily penetrate into human blood through lungs cells, she said.
The official said sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide were released from industrial emissions and car engines at different concentrations that accumulated into the ambience causing air pollution. She mentioned that the Federal Capital’s air quality was commendable during the lockdown as vehicular emissions had drastically reduced.
