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Breathing death: Colombo’s air pollution problem

09 Mar 2021

  The authorities last week stated that scientific surveys have found that the oxygen percentage in the city of Colombo is gradually declining in proportion to the city’s population. This issue had been discussed by Minister of Environment Mahinda Amaraweera and Mayor of Colombo Rosy Senanayake, where the latter had sought the Ministry’s support to take steps to address the issue of air pollution in the city. It was also announced that a new programme would be launched in this regard by the Ministry and the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC). The programme will include carrying out daily oxygen level tests in the city. Due to the growing population, number of vehicles on the road, and development projects such as power plants, the issue of air pollution in Sri Lanka is as real as any other issue, and environmental activists have expressed concerns over it for years. Looking at the recent developments, it can also be pointed out that in the wider discussion about environmental pollution in the country, the issue of air pollution does not receive sufficient attention.   Oxygen decrease: Fact or exaggeration? However, when it comes to the claim that the oxygen percentage in the city is on the wane, environmentalists expressed mixed views. They said that even though addressing the increasing air pollution is crucial, without concrete scientific data, it is not possible to suggest such a claim. Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ) Executive Director Hemantha Withanage, responding to the Ministry’s claim regarding the oxygen level in the city, told The Morning that in order to make such a serious statement and to launch programmes to counter such an issue, a proper research must be conducted first. He stressed that such decisions and programmes should be backed by proper, long-term studies. “If the authorities can claim that the oxygen percentage in a city like Colombo, which is located near the ocean, was declining, what made them think that the same issue does not exist in Kandy, where the issue of air pollution has been persisting for around 15-20 years?” Speaking of the situation in Colombo, he added that Colombo is an open city that either lets in or lets out air via areas closer to the ocean. He also said that even if the oxygen percentage in Colombo goes down, it recovers fast if there is enough wind. He explained that for decades, specialist doctors, researchers, and academics have pointed out that Sri Lanka’s worst air pollution exists in Kandy, even though the authorities have provided no solutions so far. He said that Kandy is surrounded by a range of mountains and that there is no way for air pollutants to exit the region. Compared to Colombo, Kandy’s situation is even more serious due to the said geographical factors as well as the high population and the heavy road congestion, Withanage added. He also raised concerns over the “scientific surveys” the authorities had mentioned, as specific details about them have not been announced. “The said survey results remain unknown. Even though the scientific community is not ready to accept it just because a Minister says so, without any credible study data, the public, especially the middle-class people, get fooled by such statements. Before making such claims, we need to conduct research and present the findings, and that should be done by either scientists, research agencies, and recognised universities, or, in order to substantiate such a claim, at least several years of data on Colombo’s air quality should be presented.” Withanage further noted that in a context where a large number of unresolved environmental issues exist in Sri Lanka, the authorities raising concerns over the low oxygen percentage in a city located near the ocean raises concerns. He added that oxygen is a concern for the public because they have gained some awareness about it, adding that the same level of concern is not raised about other gases such as carbon dioxide, because the public does not have adequate awareness about such. Moreover, he stressed that the fact that the public has even less knowledge about nitrogen, which constitutes the largest share of the air we breathe, is worrying. “The public would not feel the same way if someone had claimed that Colombo’s carbon dioxide percentage has increased,” he opined.   Ad hoc tree-planting Withanage also alleged that the programme may be an attempt to justify the urban reforestation programmes, for which funds have been allocated, and further claimed that such programmes can be implemented in a way the public feels is justifiable by raising concerns over the low oxygen percentage. “The Colombo city does not have adequate space for reforestation programmes. Now, when the authorities ask the public to plant trees due to the decreasing oxygen percentage, people will do it. Planting trees, however, does not create a new environmental system in Colombo. Planting trees is good, but what we must focus more on is preventing deforestation over reforestation, as the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) is encouraging the public to do. Withanage added that in Sri Lanka, the success of tree-planting is between 10% and 30%. He also said that most of these programmes aim at planting only around 10 species of trees, and that they do not have any diversity. He stressed that those conducting these programmes do not seem to take into account the climate zone these trees belong to. “A forest spread in an area of one acre contains around 8,000 trees. To restore the forest cover in this area, in the event these trees are cut, how many trees need to be planted? Instead of planting new trees, it is always better to prevent cutting trees. The authorities’ attempts at reforesting mangroves is also questionable, as the manner in which they did it was not sustainable.” Adding that there are also many misconceptions regarding reforestation, Withanage pointed out that reforestation programmes have to be carried out in a methodical manner that ensures results and suits the environment. “Plants can grow back automatically, and people do not need to conduct reforestation programmes to grow plants artificially,” he added.   Carbon dioxide in Colombo Speaking of the carbon dioxide percentage in Colombo, Withanage said that increasing carbon dioxide can pose a much severe threat than the lack of oxygen, noting that the increasing carbon dioxide percentage can cause a decline in the oxygen percentage. Explaining that various human activities cause a high carbon dioxide emission in Colombo city, he said that a power plant, which was built to generate power by burning garbage collected from Colombo despite opposition raised by environmental activists, has also resulted in a high carbon dioxide emission. He further said that certain power plants were built outside Colombo, even though the initial plan was to build them in Colombo. “The burning of garbage including plastic in Colombo city releases a lot of carbon dioxide, and consequently, the oxygen percentage goes down. A lot of activities such as industrial activities also contribute to the increase in the carbon dioxide percentage, and unfortunately, the public does not seem to understand this part of the problem. They only understand when they are told that the oxygen percentage has declined. If there is in fact a decrease in the oxygen level, the public would feel it. Without concrete data, I am not saying that Colombo’s oxygen percentage is not low; but I cannot say that it is high either. Research to ascertain such should be done by a reputed institution.”   Traffic problem Withanage said that due to several reasons, Colombo’s air quality sometimes deteriorates, adding that this situation, however, cannot be referred to as there being a low percentage of oxygen but be described as an increase in the air pollution. “Air pollution can be caused by a number of air pollutants such as sulfur and dust, when they are at high levels. No research has said that the decline in the oxygen percentage is a cause. Air pollution in urban areas can lead to a multitude of health issues, especially lung-related illnesses. But in any case, there is a lack of proper studies. Even though there is certain data, the Government has not taken adequate steps to prevent such.” For example, when building roads around Colombo, one justification given by the authorities is that Colombo’s air pollution can be reduced by stopping vehicles from entering the city unnecessarily, Withanage said. He stressed that by increasing the use of public transport as well as projects such as the Long Rail Transit (LRT) or metro trains would also help in reducing air pollution. Encouraging the use of electric vehicles would also be extremely beneficial, according to Withanage. He stressed that therefore, it does not matter as to how many trees are planted in Colombo, adding that the only way to improve air quality is by limiting the number of vehicles entering Colombo.   Airtight laws When contacted regarding the existing laws and regulations that could be used to prevent air pollution, environmental lawyer Dr. Jagath Gunawardana told The Morning that the National Environmental Act comprises several provisions to prevent air pollution, concerning the ambient air quality and emission standards. He said that when it does not rain adequately, the concentration of air pollutants in the air increases and that it is a result of the country’s forest system being destroyed. “When looking at the situation in the Gampaha and Colombo Districts, a large number of vehicles can be seen and vehicular emission is also high. In these areas, the forest cover is also very low. On top of it, the forest cover in other areas is also declining. It can be said that the people of Colombo live thanks to the oxygen coming from the ocean and the forests in other districts. So is the situation in the Gampaha District.” Dr. Gunawardana emphasised that the said factors cannot be controlled using the existing legal provisions. In addition to the provisions contained in the National Environmental Act concerning air pollution, according to Dr. Gunuawardana, there is a set of regulations in the Motor Traffic Act concerning vehicular emission, under which emission tests are conducted. He added that steps that cannot be taken under the said laws and regulations should be taken under other laws such as the Forest Conservation Ordinance and the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance with a focus on protecting forests. Furthermore, he said that using the Marine Pollution Prevention Act, attention should also be paid to preventing ocean pollution, as ocean pollution can lead to the lack of algae. According to scientists, algae can absorb certain air pollutants. According to an article published by National Geographic, around 70% of the oxygen in the atmosphere is produced by marine plants. Dr. Gunawardana added that protecting the marine environment is not a responsibility only of Sri Lanka, but a shared responsibility with other countries as well. He further said that despite having laws and regulations in place, air-polluting industries and vehicular emission are on the rise, and that they do not take place in accordance with the set standards. He noted that responsible public institutions such as the CEA, the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC), and the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA), not having enough officials and facilities to work with, are also issues, adding that without criticising these institutions, Sri Lanka should strengthen them. Speaking of the laws and regulations, Withanage added that the relevant laws must also be strengthened. He said that more than the lack of laws and regulations, what has contributed to increasing pollution is the lack of the proper implementation of the existing ones.   Authorities’ response National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) Air Quality Unit Co-ordinator and senior scientist Sarath Premasiri told The Morning that there may have been a miscommunication when the said information about Colombo’s oxygen percentage declining was conveyed, adding that the situation may be described better as a decline in the quality of air. He said that the oxygen level does not decline very easily and that a considerable change in the oxygen level takes place very slowly. He also said that a change of around 0.5 in the oxygen level takes around eight million years, which is unlikely to cause any adverse effects. Speaking of the overall air pollution, he said: “Air pollution depends on climate changes and the direction of the wind. In the past few months, due to external air pollutants entering the country with the Northeast Monsoon, there was a slight increase in the air pollution. This increase was, however, very slight and was not severe enough to affect people. According to the classifications of the NBRO, Colombo’s air quality was in the ‘moderate’ level”. The Morning tried to contact Secretary to the Ministry of Environment Dr. Anil Jasinghe to obtain more information regarding the said project and the scientific surveys which are said to have revealed that the oxygen percentage in Colombo is declining, but to no avail. Various forms and degrees of environmental pollution have always existed. In the recent past, however, Sri Lanka has reported a rapid increase in deforestation, and according to the environmentalists who spoke to The Morning, deforestation is a directly and strongly contributing factor to air pollution in the country. In the end, if there is no breathable air, what hope do we have?


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