Smog in Lahore, Pakistan

For Pakistani residents, the air quality has recently been rivaling that of New Dehli. November is one of the worst times for air quality in Pakistan due to the increased burning of crops, emissions and cold weather. The government has announced a new antismog policy, detailing safe levels of particulate matter, however, these levels are continually exceeded with current practices. Prior to this period of increased emissions, air quality had not been monitored, leading to a lack of data which has hindered the awareness of the issue. Whereas China has intensely monitored air quality since the Beijing smog crisis, Pakistan has not yet had the initiative to do so. Within this past period of emissions alone, numerous road accidents have occurred, linked to the poor visibility. Due to this increased occurrence of problems related to air quality, bans on the burning of crops and solid waste have been implemented, as well as cutting back on power generation. The government, as well as the public, have chosen to place blame on neighboring India’s poor environmental conditions, as opposed to reflecting on themselves and implementing long lasting policy.

In my opinion, air quality and emissions policies in developing countries seem to be more reactive than proactive which makes this approach rather ineffective at protecting current citizens’ health. Although some of these policies are seen as potentially impacting the economy negatively, it could overall result in a more productive economy. By improving the air quality proactively, this would prevent missed days in production and education. However, I do realize this could place a large burden on governments, especially ones that are corrupt or have limited power. Despite this, the health of citizens and the environment are directly linked to productivity which should encourage governments to implement air quality policies.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/10/world/asia/lahore-smog-pakistan.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fworld&action=click&contentCollection=world&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=164&pgtype=sectionfront