Low wind speed aggravates pollution risk

Shahdara records unhealthy air quality

LAHORE:

Low wind speeds are causing concerns about the accumulation of air pollutants across Lahore as several localities reported elevated pollution levels on Monday.

Winds forecast to blow at around 3km per hour during afternoon hours can hamper the dispersal of pollutants, increasing the risk of pollution accumulating near the ground with an expected seasonal deterioration in air quality approaching

Punjab Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data showed Lahore's overall Air Quality Index (AQI) at 126 at 10am, placing it in the moderate category. The reading was substantially higher than the 74 recorded at the same time a day earlier.

Shahdara recorded an AQI of 209, classified as unhealthy, while Multan Road registered 171 and GT Road 169, indicating unhealthy air for sensitive groups.

IQAir's past assessment placed Lahore's annual average fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration at 88.9 micrograms per cubic metre, about 17.8 times the World Health Organisation's annual guideline.

The.monitoring data shows that several areas remain vulnerable to unhealthy pollution levels even before the peak winter smog period.

Low wind speed can reduce the rate at which pollutants disperse, allowing emissions from traffic, industries, brick kilns and other sources to accumulate. The impact depends on wind direction, atmospheric stability, temperature and volume of emissions.

During the last 24 hours,

environment protection teams inspected 85 brick kilns across the province, demolishing four and sealing two others. A case was registered against an operator, while three kilns received notices for violations.

Officials also inspected 24 industrial units, sealing four and imposing fines totalling Rs200,000.

According to a spokesperson, teams checked 17 barbecue and commercial cooking locations and issued smog notices to four. Suction hoods were installed at 13 commercial cooking points to improve compliance with environmental requirements.

However, vehicle exhaust, construction dust, industrial emissions and burning of waste can continue contributing to pollution even when kilns or factories are shut down for violations.