RAWALPINDI: The District Health Authority Rawalpindi on Wednesday issued a health advisory on anti-smog measures, and urged people to take precautions.

Environment expert and chairman of environmental sciences at Pir Mehr Ali Shah University of Agriculture Prof Dr Azeem Khalid told Dawn that there were minimum chances of smog in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

“Yes, there is presence of smog in and around the main roads of the twin cities due to smoke emitting from vehicles but it could not grip the entire area as there were less industrial units here,” Prof Khalid said, adding that people should wear masks while travelling on main roads.

Talking about smog, he said smog was created during a thermal inversion.

Officials advise people to wear masks, keep windows closed

Explaining the phenomenon, Prof Khalid said thermal inversion occurred when a layer of warm air was situated over a layer of cooler air. “Dust and smoke stay in hot air, which causes smog,” he added.

Explaining the difference betweensmog in Lahore andIslamabad, Prof Khalid said due to presence of hills around the twin cities, air did not bring dust or smoke with it from other districts, therefore the atmosphere remained clean.

“In Potohar region, strong winds blew away the dust and smoke however, in Lahore, smoke emitted from crop residues and industrial units in and around Lahore, especially from cross the border, created smog,” he said.

Deputy Commissioner Dr Hassan Waqar Cheema told Dawn that there were less chances of smog in the garrison city as the administration had been adopting anti-smog measures since September. He said the health authority had issued the advisory on precautionary measures, adding that there was complete ban on the burning of solid waste as we collected waste and dumped it in the landfill site.

He said during anti-smog activities carried out in Rawalpindi from January to October, the administration sealed two industrial units for violation and imposed a fine of Rs700,000 on others, demolished 19 brick kilns, stopped operation of 13 others through water showering, imposed Rs8 million fine and razed four pyrolysis units.

He said these measures had been taken before the change in weather. However, he admitted that there were some issues that they were working to tackle.

“The administration asked the environment department to check the Air Quality Index on main roads of Rawalpindi on a daily basis so that the issue could be tackled promptly,” he said.

Meanwhile, District Health Authority Chief Executive Officer Dr Asif Arbab Niazi advised the public to use face masks and goggles when leaving home and get their vehicles inspected to reduce smog pollution.

He also emphasised that factories should install air pollution control devices, saying that plantation played a pivotal role in controlling smog and urged farmers not to burn crop residue.

The advisory suggested that the use of wet cloth for floor cleaning in houses was better than using a broom. Keep windows and doors of the houses closed and drink as much water as possible, Dr Niazi said, adding that smog awareness counters had been activated in hospitals.

Published in Dawn, November 7th, 2024