Air pollution is not a new problem in Hanoi, but it always comes back, especially at the time of changing seasons or the humid, foggy weather of the first days of the New Year, the concerns about the health of the people of the capital are pushed to a climax, because the air quality index (AQI) shows unsafe warning signs with brown, red, and even purple colors.
Discussing this situation, Dr. Hoang Duong Tung - Chairman of the Vietnam Clean Air Network, former Deputy Director General of the General Department of Environment said that to effectively solve the problem of environmental pollution, it is not only the responsibility of the city leaders and local authorities but also the support of the people and businesses, because everyone is a beneficiary and suffers together. Therefore, "if you lose your leg, she has to take out a bottle of wine", nothing in this world is free.
Dear Dr. Hoang Duong Tung! As someone who is always passionate about environmental protection in the capital, how do you evaluate the air quality in Hanoi in the first days of the New Year of the Dragon 2024?
-I still have the habit of monitoring the AQI index every day, especially in Hanoi. Not only do I look at the moitruongthudo website but I also refer to many other channels to self-evaluate and compare changes in air quality in Hanoi in particular and some other regions in general based on the knowledge and experience accumulated during my previous work.
I think that Hanoi's air quality is quite complicated, changing by year, by season, even by day and by hour. In winter, especially at the transition between Fall-Winter and Winter-Spring, the humid, foggy weather like the early days of Spring has made the air quality worse, even making it difficult to breathe when sitting indoors. This is not unusual for some northern provinces, including Hanoi. In unfavorable meteorological conditions such as calm winds, high humidity, low temperatures, the emissions remaining in the low layers cannot be dispersed, causing serious pollution, making the AQI index as bad as in the first days of January 2024 or the early days of Spring. However, when the Northeast monsoon comes, or when it rains a little bit, the air quality is much better because the dust is diffused or washed away.
Does that mean the weather is the reason for the poor air quality in Hanoi, sir?
- Oh no, weather conditions are not the cause of pollution but are objective factors that increase or decrease the concentration of dust emitted from human activities. However, through the lens of weather, we can partly grasp the current situation of PM2.5 fine dust in Hanoi. In fact, there are many days that are very worrying.
Is the “concern” here the increase in fine dust?
- That's right. We can check again the beginning of December 2023, January & February 2024, the AQI index is very high, proving that the concentration of PM2.5 fine dust in Hanoi is high compared to the standards of the World Health Organization (WHO) and national standards (with PM2.5 fine dust according to Vietnamese standards is below 50µg/m³ daily).
I know that you have also stated many times that the main causes of air pollution in Hanoi are vehicles such as cars and motorbikes (running on gasoline and oil) ; industrial production activities in factories and craft villages; urban construction activities and burning garbage and straw after harvest , etc. At this time, do you think there are any other causes?
-Those emission sources are still the main causes, but it needs to be clarified that not only are those emission sources directly located in Hanoi, but they are also affected by emission sources in neighboring areas.
There is another source of emissions that I think needs to be paid close attention to, which is waste incineration plants. This source has only appeared in recent years but we have not paid attention to it, although some other localities have also begun to "feel the impact" because of emissions that pollute the air environment, which may contain extremely toxic substances such as dioxin/furan. Therefore, Hanoi leaders need to pay attention and have solutions for this source of emissions.
As for the ratio, volume, and percentage of each emission source, we must conduct an inventory of emission sources to know exactly. Hanoi has not yet conducted this inventory, so there is no specific emission reduction roadmap for each industry, profession, or district. Therefore, the effectiveness is not clear, as evidenced by the brown, red, and purple tones of the AQI index on many days of the year.
He said that Hanoi does not have a specific roadmap for emission reduction, but in fact, Hanoi has a roadmap for emission reduction in the transportation sector (for example, limiting private vehicles, developing public transport and electric vehicles); Hanoi has been implementing measures to limit straw burning, replace honeycomb coal stoves, renovate and treat river and lake pollution;... and has achieved impressive numbers, according to a report from the Hanoi Department of Natural Resources and Environment.
- Hanoi's efforts in protecting the environment and improving air quality are very commendable and undeniable. It's exactly as you said. And I know. However, no matter which front Hanoi is deploying, which field Hanoi is "fighting" in, it is not resolute, not going to the end to solve the problem, it is still scattered, even vague. For example, the plan to limit/ban straw burning in suburban districts, although the report is quite good, in reality, how much Hanoi has limited is unclear and not sustainable because the policy for farmers is not specific, but is still general and focused on appeals, so they go around and around spontaneously burning straw. If farmers want to join, local authorities must persevere with policies, technical solutions, including financial support in a synchronous, reasonable and sustainable manner suitable for each locality. I think this support budget is insignificant compared to the district budget. Of course, when there is a support policy, people must be responsible for implementing it and not repeat old habits. "If you lose your leg, I will have to take out a bottle of wine", in this world, there is nothing free that does not require effort to create sustainable value. Enterprises must also have the responsibility to accompany, cannot stand aside.
So, in your opinion, what should Hanoi do to effectively reduce emissions?
-As I said above, Hanoi has done a lot to protect the environment and improve air quality, but I see that it is still scattered, not prioritized, and not really drastic. Hanoi needs to have in-depth, systematic research on emission sources to have specific, scientific data. When there is reliable data on emission sources, Hanoi can set a target for emission reduction in 5 years, or 10 years. Based on this strategic goal, Hanoi will allocate specific emission reduction targets for each industry, profession, and district; prioritize the emission reduction budget for which areas are important first; require which industries and districts to implement immediately, etc. Only then can we reach the destination according to the roadmap.
And to make people and businesses more responsible for the environment, Hanoi must promote propaganda about daily air quality as it has done before. To promote propaganda, the data must be complete and accurate. This means that after investing in monitoring stations, Hanoi needs to have a maintenance regime according to technical requirements. The initial investment cost is very commendable, but the maintenance cost is not small, but it is necessary to do it if Hanoi really wants to improve air quality.
Thank you very much!
09:27 03/02/2024
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