Senate Climate Change Caucus Mulls Over Smog Hazards

The Senate Committee on Climate Change Caucus Thursday mulled over Smog perpetrating serious environmental and health obliteration in the region and emphasized over immediate steps for environmental risk reduction.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th Nov, 2018 ) :The Senate Committee on Climate Change Caucus Thursday mulled over Smog perpetrating serious environmental and health obliteration in the region and emphasized over immediate steps for environmental risk reduction. The Committee held its public hearing with Senator Sherry Rehman in the Chair.

The environmental lawyer and activist Ahmad Rafay Alam through his presentation described the phenomenon of Smog, its hazards and mitigation steps taken all over the world with respect to developed countries particularly China to the members of the Caucus. He also mentioned the contribution of neighbouring country India in the Smog prevailing in Pakistan and the latter's indigenous role in the phenomenon.

Senator Sherry Rehman said that Smog has rendered grave implications on the country as visibility has reduced to 4 km even in the coastal area of Karachi. The grim environmental developments should be amicably addressed to avoid any major loss, adding the situation in India was a precedent where people hanged artificial lungs in public, which turned dark and decayed, to gauge Smog's impact on the city of Delhi, she added. "The situation resulted into abrupt policy making and initiatives by India to enforce counter measures mitigating Smog risk. We need to take decisions at the spur of the moment and simultaneously educate our nation. Smog is not merely an environmental issue rather a national one jeopardizing the future of our generations," she remarked.

Ahmed Rafay Alam in his presentation, revealed that the country's air and ambiance was polluted throughout the country beyond permissible limits due to its indigenous industrial and vehicular emissions whereas crop burning was not to be blamed as the only factor for Smog. "The major reason of significant Smog incidence in the region is that due to climate change there are temperature shits that have caused our winter season to shrink," he added.

He said that according to Environment Protection Department (EPD) Punjab the city of Lahore has transgressed the permissible emissions of particulate matter 2�5 in its atmosphere to a dangerous level in a year.

He emphasized that individual initiatives as well as collective efforts at the stat level are required not only to educate and aware our nation rather develop policy in light of degrading environmental scenario. "China formed sustainable policy measures to keep its improve its environment as they were first given evidence of the issue and then they laid down the foundation of their long term policy measures coupled with the Green initiatives that helped China to mitigate the Smog and other environmental issues," he added.

Secretary Climate Change Shahrukh Nusrat informed the Caucus that the ministry was aware of all the aspects raised in the presentation about Smog. However, appropriate measures and initiatives were being enforced including Prime Minister Imran Khan's Clean and Green Vision which was a huge project encompassing all aspects of climate change mitigation program.

He said further steps were also under going in collaboration with international partners and UN offices engaged with the ministry on climate change risk reduction and mitigation whereas the ministry was also establishing coordination among provinces and Federal government over the issue.

Director General Environment Muhammad Irfan Tariq said that the ministry has been making three majorsteps in climate change management and mitigation as petrol and diesel being utilized in the country to be converted on 'Euro-II' technology whereas consultation was in the process with the ministry of petroleum. The second initiative was to control brick kilns' dark smoke emissions and their conversion into zigzag technology while their education and conversion was being carried out in collaboration with international donors. The third step to hold dialogue with India over trans-boundary crop burning resulting into the country's Smog whereas all available forums would be utilized to address the issue, he maintained.