The government is giving priority to the adoption of Euro 5 and 6 fuel quality standards under the proposed National Clean Air Policy (NCAP) in a bid to reduce pollution and improve environment.
It is planning to enforce emission standards for industries and prevent the burning of agricultural residue. The policy is also aimed at banning the open burning of municipal solid waste as well as promoting the use of low-emission cooking technologies.
Climate Change Division, while briefing the cabinet on NCAP in a recent meeting, said that Pakistan was currently considered one of the most polluted countries in the world and air quality in some urban areas of the country had touched hazardous levels.
It pointed out that short-lived climate pollutants which included black carbon, methane, hydro-fluorocarbons and tropospheric ozone had significant short-term global warming effects, adversely impacting the agricultural yield and contributing to the poor air quality.
Reducing those air pollutants had its co-benefit of decreasing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in line with the Paris Agreement. As per the Air Quality Life Index, air pollution has reduced the average life expectancy across Pakistan by up to 2.7 years.
Premature deaths and morbidities due to air pollution cost Pakistan up to 6.5% of GDP annually, according to the World Bank (2019 report).
To date, Pakistan does not have a comprehensive air quality compliance framework and policy guidelines. To make concerted efforts across all key sectors and resolve the problem of poor air quality, the Ministry of Climate Change has developed the NCAP.
The policy is aimed at improving air quality through the implementation of various policy, technological and management-based measures, coupled with the monitoring of air quality. This can increase the national average life span by two years, reduce annual deaths by 129,500 and improve food security. Consultation had been carried out with all key stakeholders, both at the federal and provincial levels, for preparing the policy draft.
The document was based on scientific evidence and analysis that provided five major scenarios and policy recommendations. The cabinet was requested to approve the NCAP draft.
Highlighting the salient features of the policy in its briefing, the Climate Change Division emphasised that to tackle the growing challenge of air pollution and smog in major cities, the NCAP was drafted after taking the input of all stakeholders to achieve different aims. The framework for improving air quality will help reduce annual deaths, improve the health of citizens, expand economic activity and reduce trans-boundary pollution.
Its core objectives are to identify key mitigation actions, set air quality targets and facilitate the development of provincial action plans for clean air.
The government has formed the National Action Committee, which will provide policy guidance and review progress. It will update the air quality policy every five years. On the other hand, a technical committee will be responsible for devising and implementing the policy action plans.
It will report back to the National Action Committee on the progress on standards, regulations, planning capacity, institutional arrangements and building and research initiatives.
During discussion, it was suggested that the policy should be implemented expeditiously in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) as a model, which would encourage provinces to emulate.
In that regard, it was advocated that the industries, especially in the I-9 and I-10 sectors, which were causing air and water pollution, should be relocated out of the city limits. In order to formulate a viable plan for relocation and pollution control in the ICT, it was suggested that a cabinet committee may be constituted, to which the members agreed.
Highlighting the need to prioritise interventions under the NCAP, cabinet members pointed out that short-term policy measures, which could be implemented during the tenure of current government, should be undertaken immediately, while structural reforms could be left to the next government. However, a majority of the members were of the view that all interventions should be initiated in parallel.
The cabinet considered a summary titled “National Clean Air Policy - (NCAP)”, submitted by the Climate Change Division, and approved the policy. It constituted a committee tasked with recommending workable steps for implementing the pollution control measures in the ICT and suggesting a plan for relocating the pollution-causing industries.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 21st, 2023.
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