Lahore’s smog: the sun may be out but a sustainable solution remains out of sight
As Punjab eases restrictions, the lingering health crisis and calls for real environmental action expose a battle far from over.
Published November 29, 2024
PRISM/DAWN
Atif Manzoor, 45, the owner of a blue pottery business in Multan, had every reason to feel cheerful last week when the sun finally came out. For a good three weeks, the city of Sufi shrines had been shrouded in an envelope of thick smog.
For over three weeks, he said, business had been terrible, with “several orders cancelled” and advance payments refunded. He also had to bear the transport costs he had already paid after the government imposed restrictions on heavy traffic and closed the motorways due to poor visibility.
Thick smog had blanketed cities across Punjab province, home to 127 million people, since the last week of October. Multan, with a population of 2.2 million, recorded an air quality index (AQI) above 2,000, surpassing Lahore, the provincial capital, where the AQI exceeded 1,000.
While Lahore’s AQI has improved, it still fluctuates between 250 (very unhealthy) and 350 (hazardous) on the Swiss company’s scale, keeping it among the top cities in the world with the poorest air quality. As this article went into publication, it was 477, or “very unhealthy.”
Terming the AQI levels in Punjab, in particular Lahore and Multan, “unprecedented”, Punjab’s Environment Secretary, Raja Jahangir Anwar, blamed the “lax construction regulations, poor fuel quality, and allowing old smoke-emitting vehicles plying on the roads, residue burning of rice crops to prepare the fields for wheat sowing” as some of the factors contributing to the smog in winter when the air near the ground becomes colder and drier.
Manzoor was not alone in his predicament. Smog had disrupted everyone’s life in the province, including students, office workers, and those who owned or worked in or owned smoke-emitting businesses like kilns, restaurants, construction, factories, or transport, after authorities put restrictions on them.
Even farmers in rural settings were not spared. Hasan Khan, 60, a farmer from Kasur, said that the lack of sunlight, poor air quality, transport delays preventing labourers from reaching farms, and low visibility were all hindering farm work and stunting crop growth.
“The smog hampered plant growth by blocking sunlight and slowing photosynthesis, and since we do flood irrigation, the fields stay drenched longer, causing crop stress, and the trees began shedding their leaves due to poor air quality,” he said.
A screenshot of the IQAir airquality index for Thursday, November 28, 2024, showing the top 10 most polluted cities. Credit: IQAir
Divine intervention or blueskying
After weeks of relentless smog, residents of Punjab had been calling for artificial rain, similar to what was done last year. This process involves releasing chemicals like silver iodide from airplanes to induce rainfall.
However, Anwar explained that artificial rain requires specific weather conditions, including the right humidity levels, cloud formations, and wind patterns. “We only carry out cloud seeding when there is at least a 50 per cent chance of precipitation,” he said.
On November 15, favourable weather conditions allowed for cloud seeding over several cities and towns in Punjab’s Potohar Plateau, leading to natural rainfall in Islamabad and surrounding areas. The forecast also predicted that this would trigger rain in Lahore.
On November 23, Lahore received its first winter rain, which helped clear the thick, toxic smog that had been causing eye irritation and throat discomfort, revealing the sun and a clear blue sky. However, some believe the downpour was the result of the collective rain prayer, Namaz-i-Istisqa, held at mosques across the province, seeking divine intervention.
But cloud seeding has its critics. Dr Ghulam Rasul, adviser at the China-Pakistan Joint Research Centre and former head of the Pakistan Meteorological Department, cautioned that cloud seeding might reduce smog temporarily, but it was not a sustainable solution. Instead, it could create dry conditions that worsen fog and smog. He also warned that an overdose could trigger hailstorms or heavy rainfall.
Once the smog thinned and the air quality improved, the government eased its restrictions, allowing shops and restaurants (with barbecues if smoke is controlled) to remain open till 8pm and 10pm, respectively; schools and colleges have also opened, and the ban placed on construction work, brick kiln operations, and heavy transport vehicles (carrying passengers, fuels, medicines, and foods), including ambulances, rescue, fire brigades, prison, and police vehicles, has also been lifted. In addition, the government has installed 30 air quality monitors around Lahore and other cities of the province.
While the air may have cleared, health issues left in its wake are expected to persist, according to medical practitioners. Over the past 30 days, the official score of people seeking medical treatment for respiratory problems in the smog-affected districts of the province reached over 1.8 million people. In Lahore, the state-owned news agency, the Associated Press of Pakistan, reported 5,000 cases of asthma.
“Frankly, this figure seems rather underreported,” said Dr Ashraf Nizami, president of the Pakistan Medical Association’s Lahore chapter.
“This is just the beginning,” warned Dr Salman Kazmi, an internist in Lahore. “Expect more cases of respiratory infections and heart diseases ahead,” he said.
Unicef had also warned that 1.1 million children under five in the province were at risk due to air pollution. “Young children are more vulnerable because of smaller lungs, weaker immunity, and faster breathing,” the agency stated.
Divine intervention or blueskying
After weeks of relentless smog, residents of Punjab had been calling for artificial rain, similar to what was done last year. This process involves releasing chemicals like silver iodide from airplanes to induce rainfall.
However, Anwar explained that artificial rain requires specific weather conditions, including the right humidity levels, cloud formations, and wind patterns. “We only carry out cloud seeding when there is at least a 50 per cent chance of precipitation,” he said.
On November 15, favourable weather conditions allowed for cloud seeding over several cities and towns in Punjab’s Potohar Plateau, leading to natural rainfall in Islamabad and surrounding areas. The forecast also predicted that this would trigger rain in Lahore.
On November 23, Lahore received its first winter rain, which helped clear the thick, toxic smog that had been causing eye irritation and throat discomfort, revealing the sun and a clear blue sky. However, some believe the downpour was the result of the collective rain prayer, Namaz-i-Istisqa, held at mosques across the province, seeking divine intervention.
But cloud seeding has its critics. Dr Ghulam Rasul, adviser at the China-Pakistan Joint Research Centre and former head of the Pakistan Meteorological Department, cautioned that cloud seeding might reduce smog temporarily, but it was not a sustainable solution. Instead, it could create dry conditions that worsen fog and smog. He also warned that an overdose could trigger hailstorms or heavy rainfall.
Once the smog thinned and the air quality improved, the government eased its restrictions, allowing shops and restaurants (with barbecues if smoke is controlled) to remain open till 8pm and 10pm, respectively; schools and colleges have also opened, and the ban placed on construction work, brick kiln operations, and heavy transport vehicles (carrying passengers, fuels, medicines, and foods), including ambulances, rescue, fire brigades, prison, and police vehicles, has also been lifted. In addition, the government has installed 30 air quality monitors around Lahore and other cities of the province.
While the air may have cleared, health issues left in its wake are expected to persist, according to medical practitioners. Over the past 30 days, the official score of people seeking medical treatment for respiratory problems in the smog-affected districts of the province reached over 1.8 million people. In Lahore, the state-owned news agency, the Associated Press of Pakistan, reported 5,000 cases of asthma.
“Frankly, this figure seems rather underreported,” said Dr Ashraf Nizami, president of the Pakistan Medical Association’s Lahore chapter.
“This is just the beginning,” warned Dr Salman Kazmi, an internist in Lahore. “Expect more cases of respiratory infections and heart diseases ahead,” he said.
Unicef had also warned that 1.1 million children under five in the province were at risk due to air pollution. “Young children are more vulnerable because of smaller lungs, weaker immunity, and faster breathing,” the agency stated.
While the government has put several measures in place, a long-term, measurable plan is needed, say experts. Credit: Hasan Khan
Ineffective band-aid solutions
Although the government took several measures to manage the smog, few were impressed. Climate governance expert Imran Khalid, blaming the “environmental misgovernance for degradation of an already poor air quality across Pakistan,” found the anti-smog plan a “hodgepodge of general policy measures” with no long-term measurable plan.
He argued that the plan only targets seasonal smog instead of taking a year-round “regional, collective approach” to fighting air pollution across the entire Indus-Gangetic plains, not just in Lahore or Multan.
“I will take this seriously when I see a complete action plan in one place, preceded by a diagnostic of the causes and followed by a prioritisation of actions with a timeline for implementation monitored by a committee with representation of civil society,” said Dr. Anjum Altaf, an educationist specialising in several fields along with environmental sciences. “Till such time, it is just words!” he added.
Khalid said plans and policies can only succeed if they are evidence-based, inclusive, bottom-up, and “and implemented by well-trained authorities, supported by political will and resources, flexible in response to challenges, and focused on the health of the people.”
Others argue that the slow response to the decade-long smog crisis, despite a clear understanding of its causes, reflects a matter of misplaced priorities.
“It’s all about priority,” said Aarish Sardar, a design educator, curator, and writer based in Lahore. “Many years ago, when the government wanted to nip the dengue epidemic, it was able to,” he said.
“Mosquitoes were eliminated once they reached officials’ residences,” said farmer Khan, agreeing that when there is political will, remarkable changes can occur.
Ineffective band-aid solutions
Although the government took several measures to manage the smog, few were impressed. Climate governance expert Imran Khalid, blaming the “environmental misgovernance for degradation of an already poor air quality across Pakistan,” found the anti-smog plan a “hodgepodge of general policy measures” with no long-term measurable plan.
He argued that the plan only targets seasonal smog instead of taking a year-round “regional, collective approach” to fighting air pollution across the entire Indus-Gangetic plains, not just in Lahore or Multan.
“I will take this seriously when I see a complete action plan in one place, preceded by a diagnostic of the causes and followed by a prioritisation of actions with a timeline for implementation monitored by a committee with representation of civil society,” said Dr. Anjum Altaf, an educationist specialising in several fields along with environmental sciences. “Till such time, it is just words!” he added.
Khalid said plans and policies can only succeed if they are evidence-based, inclusive, bottom-up, and “and implemented by well-trained authorities, supported by political will and resources, flexible in response to challenges, and focused on the health of the people.”
Others argue that the slow response to the decade-long smog crisis, despite a clear understanding of its causes, reflects a matter of misplaced priorities.
“It’s all about priority,” said Aarish Sardar, a design educator, curator, and writer based in Lahore. “Many years ago, when the government wanted to nip the dengue epidemic, it was able to,” he said.
“Mosquitoes were eliminated once they reached officials’ residences,” said farmer Khan, agreeing that when there is political will, remarkable changes can occur.
Header image: Farmer Hasan Khan took photos of his farm in Kasur during the smog. Credit: Hasan Khan
This article was originally published in Inter Press Service and has been reproduced here with permission.
Zofeen T. Ebrahim is an independent journalist based in Karachi.
She tweets at @zofeen28.
Clean-up needed
November 29, 2024
A POPULAR saying I have been hearing since childhood is: “Safaai nisf iman hai” (cleanliness is half the faith). Today, the ‘Queen of the East’, as Karachi was once dubbed by Sir Charles Napier, has lost its faith. It needs a good scrub.
When it comes to rankings, the city certainly flies high or trails far behind, whichever way you prefer to put it. Not too long ago, the Economist’s Intelligence Unit evaluated 173 cities in the world in terms of their livability. Environment and infrastructure were two factors among others that were taken into account. Karachi ranked 169th.
In terms of pollution by solid waste, the city has the worst record in the country. Solid waste makes the city unliveable and also has a negative aesthetic dimension. Karachi generates 16,500 tons of solid waste every day, but barely two-thirds of it is collected to be sent to the handful of landfill sites on the outskirts of the city. The remaining waste adorns street corners and open plots and can also be seen in the middle of the road. The Sindh Solid Waste Management Board set up in 2014 has failed to do its job. Its poor performance is on public display.
Not enough has been written about the impact of urban pollution on human health. Even the Pakistan Medical Association seems to have resigned itself to people learning to live with urban waste in their vicinity. So focused is the medical profession on the curative approach that most of its practitioners fail to mention that a cleaner city would mean fewer illnesses and less out-of-pocket expenditure for patients.
They should also sort out the waste they generate in their homes.
One point of view is that the solid waste problem is a class issue. In his South Asian Idea (a web-based periodical) Anjum Altaf writes about the future of the city in South Asia. He does not hold out much hope for our cities: “…each South Asian city has split into two — the rich enclaves and the poor slums. At the same time, the discovery that disease is spread by germs not polluted air has shifted the focus from collective sanitation reforms to protection of the individual through immunisation. The rich have thus also isolated themselves from the diseases of the poor. As a result, there is no powerful lobby of influential citizens behind urban reform that benefits the entire city.”
He asks: “Is the South Asian city doomed to a schizophrenic and split future?”
However, Karachi does not exactly fit this description. The metropolis is certainly divided into localities inhabited by people from different income groups. But these areas are not totally detached from one another. In fact, the more affluent among them are often ringed by squatters’ settlements that supply menial labour to serve rich households. Hence our society may be schizophrenic but not the city.
Defence Housing Authority, the most affluent and ostentatious of all residential areas, also has its share of solid waste heaps and dilapidated roads. The residents’ problems are no different from those of their kin in Nazimabad and Gulshan in this respect. The problems of the rich, however, are much smaller in size and complexity. Moreover, money solves a number of them. Still, the problems exist, testifying to the parity that marks Pakistanis’ temperament vis-à-vis ‘rubbish’.
From where do we begin Operation Clean-up? While the removal of primary waste from public collection points and transporting the solid waste to the dump is obviously the duty of the municipal authorities, the people also have a role to play. Our disregard for cleanliness in public places knows no class barriers. I have seen the richest of rich lower the window of their air-conditioned Pajero and hurl a bagful of kitchen waste towards a garbage can on the road corner. Needless to say, the aim was not perfect.
On their part, the people should help by not littering public places. They should also sort out the waste they generate in their homes into three categories: organic kitchen waste for composting, paper and glass for recycling, and plastic waste that is given a decent burial. The local government should take over at this point, and provide practical collection points from where the waste, sorted out, is carried to the correct destination.
Once I was told by my host in a Southeast Asian country that children taught the virtues of cleanliness in school learn fast. This practice teaches the child the dignity of labour as well. The only school in Karachi I know that does this is The Garage School that celebrated its silver jubilee last week. Its premises are spick and span as the students sweep their classrooms themselves. Other schools should be doing the same to create a vested interest in cleanliness in those who spend their time there.
www.zubeida-mustafa.com
Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2024
When it comes to rankings, the city certainly flies high or trails far behind, whichever way you prefer to put it. Not too long ago, the Economist’s Intelligence Unit evaluated 173 cities in the world in terms of their livability. Environment and infrastructure were two factors among others that were taken into account. Karachi ranked 169th.
In terms of pollution by solid waste, the city has the worst record in the country. Solid waste makes the city unliveable and also has a negative aesthetic dimension. Karachi generates 16,500 tons of solid waste every day, but barely two-thirds of it is collected to be sent to the handful of landfill sites on the outskirts of the city. The remaining waste adorns street corners and open plots and can also be seen in the middle of the road. The Sindh Solid Waste Management Board set up in 2014 has failed to do its job. Its poor performance is on public display.
Not enough has been written about the impact of urban pollution on human health. Even the Pakistan Medical Association seems to have resigned itself to people learning to live with urban waste in their vicinity. So focused is the medical profession on the curative approach that most of its practitioners fail to mention that a cleaner city would mean fewer illnesses and less out-of-pocket expenditure for patients.
They should also sort out the waste they generate in their homes.
One point of view is that the solid waste problem is a class issue. In his South Asian Idea (a web-based periodical) Anjum Altaf writes about the future of the city in South Asia. He does not hold out much hope for our cities: “…each South Asian city has split into two — the rich enclaves and the poor slums. At the same time, the discovery that disease is spread by germs not polluted air has shifted the focus from collective sanitation reforms to protection of the individual through immunisation. The rich have thus also isolated themselves from the diseases of the poor. As a result, there is no powerful lobby of influential citizens behind urban reform that benefits the entire city.”
He asks: “Is the South Asian city doomed to a schizophrenic and split future?”
However, Karachi does not exactly fit this description. The metropolis is certainly divided into localities inhabited by people from different income groups. But these areas are not totally detached from one another. In fact, the more affluent among them are often ringed by squatters’ settlements that supply menial labour to serve rich households. Hence our society may be schizophrenic but not the city.
Defence Housing Authority, the most affluent and ostentatious of all residential areas, also has its share of solid waste heaps and dilapidated roads. The residents’ problems are no different from those of their kin in Nazimabad and Gulshan in this respect. The problems of the rich, however, are much smaller in size and complexity. Moreover, money solves a number of them. Still, the problems exist, testifying to the parity that marks Pakistanis’ temperament vis-à-vis ‘rubbish’.
From where do we begin Operation Clean-up? While the removal of primary waste from public collection points and transporting the solid waste to the dump is obviously the duty of the municipal authorities, the people also have a role to play. Our disregard for cleanliness in public places knows no class barriers. I have seen the richest of rich lower the window of their air-conditioned Pajero and hurl a bagful of kitchen waste towards a garbage can on the road corner. Needless to say, the aim was not perfect.
On their part, the people should help by not littering public places. They should also sort out the waste they generate in their homes into three categories: organic kitchen waste for composting, paper and glass for recycling, and plastic waste that is given a decent burial. The local government should take over at this point, and provide practical collection points from where the waste, sorted out, is carried to the correct destination.
Once I was told by my host in a Southeast Asian country that children taught the virtues of cleanliness in school learn fast. This practice teaches the child the dignity of labour as well. The only school in Karachi I know that does this is The Garage School that celebrated its silver jubilee last week. Its premises are spick and span as the students sweep their classrooms themselves. Other schools should be doing the same to create a vested interest in cleanliness in those who spend their time there.
www.zubeida-mustafa.com
Published in Dawn, November 29th, 2024
