Islamabad (EMS). Pakistan is also in the grip of heavy environmental pollution due to which the air here has become toxic. People are having great difficulty in breathing. Lahore has been named the third most polluted city in the world in the US Air Quality Index. At the same time, Karachi, the business capital of Pakistan, has reached number four in this list. This list has been released by the US Air Quality Index based on recent air pollution data. The US Environmental Protection Agency considers an AQI within 50 satisfactory. 181 Particulate Matter (PM) rating has been recorded in Lahore, while it is reported to reach 163 in Karachi. According to earlier reports by the Food and Agriculture Organization and environmental experts, in India and Pakistan, pollution is caused by stubble burning, transportation and industries throughout the year. Many brick kilns are operating in the old fashioned way. Recently, the government also ordered the closure of such brick kilns, but some are still operating.
According to media reports, Lahore had joined the list earlier this month after the AQI reached 289 on November 2. Earlier in March, Pakistan was named the second most polluted country in the IQ Air global air quality report. The country’s environmental experts have blamed the transportation sector and industries, apart from burning crop residues, for the pollution. At the same time, earlier last year, Pakistan’s Lahore ranked first in the list of the world’s most polluted cities. According to WTO, 9 out of every 10 people in the world breathe heavily polluted air. According to this, every year 7 million people die worldwide due to outdoor and household air pollution. The number of people who died in 2016 due to outdoor pollution alone was close to 42 lakh, while the number of deaths due to domestic air pollution is 38 lakh. Air pollution causes death due to heart related diseases, respiratory diseases and other diseases.
There are eight standards (pollutants PM 2.5, PM 10, carbon monoxide, ozone, sulfur dioxide, aluminum and lead) to measure air pollution. The most important in this are PM 2.5 and PM 10. These numbers are the highest. PM 2.5, PM 10 and any other parameters are taken into account when measuring the Air Quality Index. It has only standard, it has no measurement unit. At the same time, PM 2.5 and PM 10 are measured in micrograms per cubic meter. The pollution caused by burning of anything contains PM 2.5 and dust particles contain PM-10.
