Pollen count increases to all-time high

Met Office also forecasts its rise in upcoming week

ISLAMABAD:

The pollen count increased up to 44,908 per cubic metre in the air in the federal capital on Sunday, the highest level paper mulberry.

MET’s senior official Dr Zaheer Babar said as a result of mostly less rainfall during the predicted months February and March the pollen abundance sharply increased. Pollen has started early during the period, he said, adding that the pollen count would also increase during the upcoming week.

Pollen season is expected to end by mid-April, he said. Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has been monitoring the airborne pollen in Islamabad throughout the year, he added.

Babar briefed that the pollen monitoring unit of PMD has installed pollen monitoring devices in different sectors of Islamabad (H-8, E-8, F-10, and G-6). He said the pollen concentration increases gradually with the onset of the spring season and attains its peak around full blossom.

The officer said that the most abundant pollen types in Islamabad are from 08 plant species (i. e. Paper Mulberry, Acacia, Eucalyptus, Pines, Grass, Cannabis, Dandelion, and Alternaria). He said out of all these plants Paper Mulberry shares about 97% of the total pollen and its concentration touches extreme limits of about 40,000 per cubic meter of air at the peak of the blossom season.

People suffering from Asthma and respiratory diseases experience serious consequences due to a sharp increase in pollen concentrations, he added.