Air Quality In Jakarta Deteriorates In Dangerous Levels; Execs Discuss How To Combat Pollution

Air quality in the populous Jakarta, Indonesia has reached dangerous levels in the past weeks.

(Photo : Getty Images/Bay Ismoyo)

According to the IQ Air, the air pollution in the city has been categorized as "unhealthy," noting that the PM2.5 concentration in Jakarta is presently 12.6 times than the World Health Organization's annual air quality guideline value.

The IQ Air, the leading Swiss air quality technology company, explained that the PM2.5 refers to the microscopic particular matter of 2.5 or less micrometers in diameter, having a wide range of detrimental effects on human health and the environment.

Experts said that it is considered as one of the main pollutants used in calculating a city or countries overall air quality rating.

Factors

Previous studies have consistently found Jakarta to be one of the most polluted cities across the planet.

According to researchers, there are a number of contributing factors as regards the high levels of pollution in Indonesia's capital.

"During the year of 2019 a PM2.5 reading of 67.2 µg/m³ was recorded, putting that month's air quality into the "unhealthy" bracket (55.5 to 150.4 µg/m³ to be classed as such)," the IQ Air pointed out.

Experts noted that due to the large population in the city, the roads are commonly filled with high numbers of motorbikes, cars and trucks.

They said that many of these vehicles would fall outside the guidelines for what an environmentally safe vehicle should be because many are still running on diesel fuels.

These vehicles are also known for emitting far higher levels of pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and sulfur dioxide (SO2), being the main components that could be associated with vehicular usage and with nitrogen dioxide being found in highest concentrations over areas with large volumes of traffic.

Through the data that was taken over in 2019, they also noticed that the city had experienced its worst spells of pollution from the months of April through to December, with particularly bad periods of pollution being recorded in May, June, July, September and October.

All of which came in with unhealthy ratings of PM2.5 in the air, requiring the readings to come in anywhere over 55.5 µg/m³.

Information had shown that the first three months of the year witnessed the cleanest air quality, although the rate in these months were still high.

The polluted air seems evident as President Joko Widodo had been battling cough for weeks, with officials suggesting that it could be related to the air condition in Jakarta.

Indonesia's Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Uno has said that doctors have been monitoring the President's condition.

Meanwhile, Widodo already directed an urgent government intervention on the matter as he had an emergency cabinet meeting with ministers on August 14 to discuss worsening air pollution.

Widodo also made an appeal to workers to ease traffic congestion by working from home.

Health risks

Amid the high levels of pollution comes an increase in the number of health risks.

Those living in Jakarta have experienced symptoms such as chest infections, irritation to the eyes, skin, mouth and nose, as well as increased susceptibility towards developing respiratory ailments such as emphysema, bronchitis and aggravated asthma.

Other conditions include damage to the heart and circulatory system, due to the pervasively small size of PM2.5.

So far, experts said that the level of air quality in Jakarta have actually gotten worse instead of improving.

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