Air Pollution in Cairo, Egypt - Case Study Example

Air pollution in Cairo, Egypt Introduction Air pollutants are substances in the air, which can cause harm to human beings and to the environment. The substances may be in the form of solid pollutants, liquid droplets or gases. The substances, which cause air pollution, can either be natural or man made factors. There are those products, which result from a process such as ash from volcanic emissions, carbon monoxide, which is emitted from motor vehicles, or sulphur dioxide, which is emitted from factories. There are other pollutants, which are not emitted directly but come because of interactions or reaction of pollutants. Example of such pollutants includes level ozone. Description of the environmental problem The air pollution has increased tremendously of late. This has become a matter of serious to the government and other agencies. The leading air products in Cairo are particulate, hydrocarbons and lead. All these pollutants are the major causes of cancer and other health problems. There are cities that have experienced high population growth sine year 2000. According to report by the United Nations, eighteen of the megacities are found in the developing countries. In accordance to this report, Cairo is one of the megacities. It has many problems, which arise as, a result of overpopulation, heavy traffic and much of pollution are vast in Cairo. Air pollution in the city is one of the major problems in the city, which makes to be defined well as a megacity. This is one of the biggest hazards that the city is facing now. According to a report released by United Nations agency for international development, it is estimated that sixteen thousand deaths can be related by to dust and particles in Cairo’s air.1 This is as a result, economic growth and industrialization, which is proceeding at a very rapid pace. Despite the fact that air pollution is increasing at an alarming rate, there has been no suitable methods monitoring the pollution prevention strategies put in place. The greater Cairo area has the highest rate of air pollution in Egypt. The area is affected by fumes from fumes emitted by vehicles, emissions from the industries, smoke from burned garbage and agriculture detritus. The air pollution is also caused by sand that is usually blown into the urban areas from the neighboring western deserts. This usually creates almost a permanent haze over the city.2 Air pollution in Cairo is compared to other towns such as Mexico City, Bangkok, San Paulo, and Tokyo, which have rampant air pollution. According to a report by the World Health Organization air pollution in Cairo is ten to one hundred times of what is regarded as safe limit if air. Cairo has a poor dispersion factor due to lack of rain, the layout it has of tall buildings and streets, which are, narrow which leads to the creation of bowl effect. Cairo has a thick and gray air. The town also has haze over it. The sky is not blue as other cities, which do not have much air pollution. Its sky is gray in colour, which can be compared to other cities, which have rampant air pollution such as Bangkok and Mexico City. The weather conditions cause the dispersion factor to be twice that of Los Angels, which its data of pollution are available. According to studies that have been, conducted shows that have of the population in Cairo will develop within a span of five to twenty five years serious health problems such as respiratory diseases and also cancer. These problems are likely to cause high rise of premature deaths. These problems will be as a cause of air pollution alone due to the particulates found in it. There are also other air pollutants, which offer the same risk factors such as ozone, sulfur oxides, carbon monoxide and other hydrocarbons. This will make the country spend also of money in medical treatments of the victims of problems caused by air pollution in Cairo. Other extra costs related to these problems include days lost of the lost workdays by the victims, the cost that will be incurred in replacing doctors, artists and administrators.3 These costs will be higher if one puts into concerns the costs, which will come because of other pollution, for example, water pollution. The rapid increase of traffic in the city has also contributed to the emission of gases that contribute to air pollution. In addition, there have been increased cancer cases in the whole country in generals. According to scientists, air pollution causes the destruction of the ozone layer. This makes the ultra violet rays reach the earth without being filtered. The rays are linked to increase of case of skin cancer found in many patients, in Egypt. According to the world health, organization living in Cairo causes a person to have effects like the ones produced by smoking twenty cigarettes a day due to air pollution that is so bad. In 2002, the World Bank reported that the country spends almost 2.42 billion as a result of environmental damage. This amounts to almost five percent of the country annual gross domestic product. Factories are the major causes of these problems.4 The industries, which contribute most to air pollution, are those that burn mazot for power. When mazot is burnt emits substances that amount if greenhouse effects, which are said, to cause global warming. Most of the industries, which use mazot, are clustered together because of the distribution purposes. The concentration of the factories at the same place causes concentration of emissions in the same place, which affects the environment, and to the surrounding communities.5 The government had tried several measures to control air pollution in Cairo. One the government had tried to reduce congestion of vehicles in the town by increasing packing charges for the vehicles to discourage many vehicles from entering the town. The government had also come up with measures to control air pollution by making the industries provide the measures they would put to control air pollution before being given licenses to operate in the town. This, however, failed as many industries did not meet the standards required or did not live to their promises to control air pollution. Value of air in Cairo Air is a very valuable asset in Cairo and Egypt as a whole. This calls for a need to protect it from being polluted. Air is used in most industries, in the country, as compressed air. The compressed air is stored energy. Its benefits are compared as those of water, electricity, gas or oil. The compressed air has advantage due to its high ration of power to power to volume. When compared with other electric motors, compressed air equipments have more economic benefits as they are economical to use and more durable. The compressed air is a safe and a reliable source, which is widely used throughout in many industries. It is estimated that almost seventy percent of factories and industries in Cairo and the entire country use compressed air in some of their operations. Unlike other sources of power, compressed air is generated onsite; this gives the users more control over its usage and more control of air quality. It is used in various industries, which includes in snow making machines it is used in tunneling equipments, used in air tools, which are used furnaces in order to remove accumulation of coke and inside the industrial freezers in order to remove frozen foods in most food factories, in Cairo. As a result, of its high degree of cleanliness compressed air is used in food manufacturing, electronics and for dental use in hospitals. Most hospitals also use the compressed air in theater operations and used by production line assembly pneumatic drills and hammers in construction works.6 Air is also essential for the tourism industry as Cairo acts as a major destination for tourism. Air is also essential for the agricultural sectors especially in the horticultural farming where Egypt is a major producer of horticultural crops. Air, which is contaminated with toxic particulates, affects the growth of crops because it affects their metabolic activities. Air is a basic need for all living things. Air supports the existence of people, animals and plants. Oxygen and carbon dioxide are the two gases that plants and animals cannot survive without. The value of air continues to increase as the population continues to increase. Therefore, there is a need to prevent pollution so that the air will support lives for the current generation and the future generation in the country. Cost benefit analysis As a result, of the increased pollution of air in Cairo if no actions are taken to reduce this menace, the effects of pollution are estimated to increase by the year 2013 by al most fifty to ninety five percent. Implementation of the policies could result in the reduction of the emissions, which would reduce the negative effects to the ozone by almost forty nine to fifty three percent. The policies set are easy to implement because they are set with consideration of the local aspects. There have been efforts to introduce the use of hybrid vehicles to control air pollution from exhausts. The government estimated this project to cost almost two billion Egyptian pounds. The other costs that have been incurred in the mitigation of air pollution include construction of plants walls, which are used to filter pollutants. The construction of the wall cost the country almost five billion shillings according to a report by the environmental management authority in Cairo. The estimated cost of the air pollution reduction strategies is far much lower that the cost of the damage caused by this problem. According to recent research the health damage caused by air pollution especially the inhalation of particulate matter and lead is very high. A comparative assessment, which was carried, in Cairo, in 1994, suggests that health damage caused by air pollutants is worrying.7 The analysis that followed this assessment on the economic benefits associated by with controlling these pollutants suggest that their economic damage is much worse as compared to the cost that the country would incur in its prevention strategies. According to World Bank report in 2002, the country spends almost 2.42 billion because of the damages caused by air pollution. This caused is incurred in most sectors especially the health sector of the country in trying to cure and prevent the diseases that are caused the polluted air, for example, respiratory disease and cancer. The country also incurs about 2 billion to purchase medicines and in hiring physicians to deal with these health problems. This is a lot of money when compared to the money that would be used to control the air pollution. The cost incurred in the strategies would be far much less that the money spent.8 Policies to improve air quality Egypt has a growing economy, which is putting more pressure on the country’s natural resources, environmental quality and the infrastructure. The transport sector consumes much of the consumer fossil fuel. This contributes to the emission of green house gases, which leads to global warming. According to research on environmental pollution, the transport sector was responsible for the emissions of energy related carbon dioxide in 2003 and 2004. In order to control the environmental and health impacts to the people and the country, the government has implemented a number of policies. The policies include commercialization of alternative fuels, for example, the use of compressed natural gas and the demonstration of other types of technologies. There has been an encouragement of the use of electric vehicles and fuel cell buses. The first national communication to United Nations framework convention of climate change outlined a policy that is aimed at addressing the challenges of climate change especially the challenges caused by air pollution. This policy, which is known as the climate change action plan, puts into consideration adaptation measures and mitigation measures, which aims at reduction of carbon dioxide and methane. The policy has assessed several mitigation actions. The policy has the support of bilateral and multilateral development agencies. Some of the mitigated actions have been implemented. The actions, which aim at the reduction of carbon dioxide, deal with energy, processes in the industries and the transport sector as part of the national policy to change the consumption from oil to natural gas.9 The use of the natural gas acts as a means of reducing air pollution and thus improving the quality of the air in the country. This also acts as a way of improving public health. The policy recognizes that utilization of the country abundant natural gas, as a fuel used for transport would act as a way of developing a new market for the product. This would also enhance improvement of air quality and protection to public health. The government encouraged the private sector through the policy to commercialize natural gas vehicles. This program proved to be successful in 1994 when the first company, which was able to convert gasoline vehicles to natural gas, was created. By the end of the year 2005, six companies had adapted to this program in the whole country. One of the major key factors to the success of this policy was the government incentives that it used to encourage more people and industries to adopt the program in its implementation. 10The government used various incentives, for example, low cost conversion charges for those who owned those cars and attractive differential prices between gasoline and the natural gas. The government has also implemented the Cairo Air Improvement Program. This policy is aimed at reduction of air pollution by improving the quality of air in Cairo and the entire country. This policy aims at the reduction of harmful emissions from the factories and the reduction of the toxic gas that are emitted by exhaust in vehicles. As a result of encouragement from the government and the oil industries about the commercialization initiative in the country, the policies have had great success in reduction of air pollution in Cairo. Egypt is rated as one of the countries with the most successful commercialization program in the whole world. There is also a standard environment policy of the government in Egypt, which aims to achieve proper environmental protection, and improvement of air quality. The policy is implemented through establishment of proper institution, economic, technical and legislative framework at the local, regional, national and the international levels. The policy has seven directives.11 The policy seek to strengthen the partnership at the national level, regional and international levels, enforcement of the fourth law of 1994 which its main aim is to protect the environment the policy also aims at strengthening and giving support to institutional all the institutions which works for the environmental conservation. These include those institutions, which fights for the conservation of environment as a result of water and air pollution. The policy also supports the integrated environmental management systems, aims at the integration of instruments, which are market based on the environmental protection field, and aims at encouraging the transfer and adaptation of environmental friendly technologies in factors and other sectors, in the country. Inside the policy framework, there are institutional and regulatory reforms, which are carried out, aimed at the implementation of national environmental policy measures and objectives. The implementation of this policy is usually by the Egyptian government is expressed by the frameworks found in the policy. This policy was established in 1999 with the support of United States Agency for International Development. The government aims at implementation of its environmental policy and measures through the use of institutions and regulatory reforms with a focus in a number of areas. The areas, which the policy, concentrates more on or puts more focus, is the use of more effective and cleaner energy and reduction of air pollution.12 Air pollution has an impact on public health, vegetation, and material deterioration. In order to minimize these problems, there is a great need prevent and minimize the damage caused by the atmospheric pollution. In order for the above strategies to succeed, there is a need to develop monitoring systems that are able to urgently and reliably detect and be able to quantify polluting sources. This will prevent further deterioration of the current levels of pollution. It is also necessary for the current real time air quality monitoring system, which is usually controlled by the Egyptian environmental affairs agency, to be adopted in order to try to solve and eliminate this problem. The government and other agencies involved in this process should also encourage industries to adapt nanotechnology, for example, application for gas monitoring system, gas leak detectors in factories and other devices that prevent emission of toxic gases into the air.13 Factors that may lead to failure of the policies However, there are a number of factors, which may make the policies fail. The country has very good environmental policies, but the problems, which arise, is that the laws are not enforced due to lack effective monitoring.14 This makes the government be in the dark side about the extent of the problems. Those who have resources can continue to cheat especially if they are involved in the pollution process. The government also seems to concentrate more on other problems that are more pressing or those problems, which are readily seen. It fails to put much focus on those problems, which may take many years for their impacts to start being experienced. Most people in the country also do not put much interest in projects or methods that are established to alleviate or control air pollution. They concentrate with their personal lives, and they live a day as it comes. Most of them do not understand the facts that related with air pollution in their localities. The other factor that may lead to the failure of air pollution reduction measures or projects is that, most of the scientist who are supposed to be in the forefront in trying to control, this problem are not vocal on the issue of air pollution. They have an attitude of not speaking about most of the problems, which affect the people. Most of the time, the scientists leave the government and other agencies who may not have enough expertise on how air pollution can be controlled. Conclusion There is a need to reverse this situation by establishing long term solutions. There should be an environmental bill of rights for all the citizens in the country. Every Egyptian should have a right to breathe clean air, have access to clean water, eat food that is not contaminated, and have the live to live in an environment that is free of toxic substances, for example, herbicides and pesticides. The bill of right should also give every citizen the right to have access to decent and health care that is affordable. It should be the responsibility of each citizen to makes sure that he puts some efforts in order to pass a healthy environment to the coming generations. References Emberson Lisa & Murray Frank (2003), Air pollution impacts on crops and forests: a global assessment, Vol 4, London, Imperial College press, 222-246. Gad-el-Hak, Mohamed (2008), Large-scale disasters: prediction, control, and mitigation, UK, Cambridge, Cambridge university press, 235-237. Ibrahim Fouad (2003), Egypt: an economic geography, US, New York, IB Taurus publisher, 222-223 Jabbra Joseph (1998), Governmental response to environmental challenges in global perspective, Vol.6, Oxford, IOS Press, 100-116. Jacobson Mark (2002), Atmospheric pollution: history, science, and regulation, UK, Cambridge, Cambridge university press, 234-236. Jardine M. & McCallum R. (1992), Engineering and health in compressed air work: proceedings of the international conference, 1st edition, Australia, Melbourne, Taylor & Francis publication 224-227. Reilly Kevin (2002), The West and the world: a history of civilization from 1400 to the present, 3rd edition, Princeton, Markus Wiener Publishers, 377 Steevens Jeffry & Linkov Igor (2008), Nanomaterials: Risks and Benefits, 2nd edition, US, New York, Springer publishers, 267-268. Sustainable Cities Programme (2001) SCP Source book series volume 6: Urban Air Quality management handbook Parts A B, Vol 6, Kenya, Nairobi, UN-HABITAT, 28-32. World Health Organization (2005), Air quality guidelines: global update 2005: particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide, Copenhagen, EURO Nonserial Publication 56-60. Note. Dear customer The previous air pollution alleviation measures are explained in the paper and there are two policies discussed . There is the commercialization of alternative fuels policy and the standard environment policy. Read More