Ever since the start of the road expansion drive in Kathmandu, streets have been full of people who look like scare-crows with their face covered in masks and shades to protect themselves from dust. With the rising level of PM10 (small dust particles which are especially harmful because they cannot be filtered by the nose and reach lungs directly) in the air, Kathmandu is fast turning into an unhealthy city.
Hopefully, once the road expansion project ends, the problem of dust and dirt will come under control. Yet, very few seem to be concerned about the major cause of rising air pollution in the capital—vehicular emission. With a staggering number of vehicles being registered and poor implementation of Vehicular Emission Testing (VET) program, gasoline engines from poorly maintained vehicles are posing as major contributors to air pollution.[break]
Republica
Increasing vehicles
More vehicles are registered in Bagmati zone than in any other zone of Nepal. Moreover, more than half the vehicles registered in Bagmati zone are concentrated in Kathmandu valley. Recent data reveals that just in the first quarter of the current fiscal year, 41,057 vehicles were registered in Bagmati. Statistics show that in the past 10 years, the number of vehicles in Kathmandu has increased four-fold, reaching 550,000. Of all the vehicles in Kathmandu, 75 percent are motorbikes, 20 percent are cars, vans and jeeps, and five percent are other public transport and heavy vehicles.
Health concerns
An international air quality index recently ranked Nepal the third worst performer in maintaining air quality. Similarly, Ministry of Environment (MoE) has recently released fresh data on air pollution. The level of PM10 in Putalisadak was reported to be 300 UG/M3 (micrograms per cubic meter of air), where UG/M3 measures chemical vapors, fumes, or dust in ambient air. PM10 at Thamel was 200 UG/M3 and at Bhaktapur was 150 UG/M3. The PM10 at these places were far beyond the national air quality standard of 120 UG/M3. Only Machchhegaun showed PM10 of just 70 UG/M3.
Previous records of 2008 had the highest pollution in Patan, Thamel and Putalisadak, with PM10 ranging from 120 UG/M3 to 135 UG/M3. Comparison of this data with the latest report clearly reflects the rapid deterioration of air quality in Kathmandu valley. Experts have found that vehicular emission contributes 60 percent of total PM10 level in Kathmandu, followed by re-suspension dust contributing 30 percent, and brick industries contributing the rest.
The increasing level of harmful matters in the atmosphere has raised concerns over the health of Kathmanduites. Carbon monoxide, sulphur-dioxide, and particulate matters are known to cause diseases like Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Asthma. Statistics show that in Kathmandu, 900 people per million die each year as a result of health problems emanating from air pollution.
Failed mechanisms
A long time ago, the government of Nepal formulated two types of emission standards to control vehicular emission. Nepal Vehicle Mass Standards 2056 BS and Vehicle and Transport Management Act 1993 focus on monitoring emission level in new and in-use vehicles. Similarly, Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police and the Bagmati Zonal Transport Management Office of Department of Traffic Management (DoTM) are responsible for providing green stickers to vehicles which pass the emission inspection test. This system of “green stickers”, known as Vehicular Emission Testing (VET) program, is not applicable to motorbikes, even though they are the most popular vehicles in Kathmandu.
As it is not compulsory for the vehicles to pass emission test before renewing the annual license, there are very few responsible owners who opt for this test. Moreover, the frequent news that the green certificates are easily available for small bribes, without the inspection, is frustrating. In some cases, owners often hastily touch up engines and motors just for the sake of passing the emission test. Also, the traffic police of Kathmandu only seem concerned about drunk drivers and seat-belts, while a lot of vehicles are moving around with expired green certificates.
The government had also planned to ban vehicles older than 20 years. But this could not be implemented due to protests from vehicle owners. Apart from the emission inspection of green stickers, there are no other mechanisms to encourage regular maintenance of vehicles.
Despite these frustrating facts, the government has introduced Nepal Vehicle Emission Standards (NVMES) 2012, which is equivalent to Euro III standards for air pollution control. It sets an acceptable limit of particulate matter, nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide emission in vehicles. When the old Euro I and Euro II standard vehicles phase out and only vehicles that accord with NVMES are left on the roads, there might be progress in maintaining air quality. But for that, proper implementation of the regulation is a must, which is definitely going to take time. At present, there is an immediate need to keep the Vehicular Emission Testing program running smoothly, as well as monitor vehicular emission on the roads in order to control increasing air pollution in Kathmandu valley.
The author writes on climate change and
environmental issues
prayash.koirala@gmail.com
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