Why it is Vital to Improve Air Quality in South Sudan
6 min read
Ayuen Dot
By Philip Ayuen Dot, Juba, South Sudan
Wednesday, February 10, 2021 (PW) — The air quality in South Sudan is considered unsafe according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Outdoor air pollution is a mix of chemicals, particulate matter, and biological materials that react with each other to form tiny hazardous particles. Particulate matter is what is used to determine how polluted a city or country is due to the disastrous effects of particulate matter on the health of people.
The most recent data indicates the country’s annual mean concentration of PM2.5 is 46 µg/m3, exceeding the recommended maximum of 10 µg/m3. This means that the people of South Sudan are exposed to four times more than the amount of pollutants that their bodies can absorb.
But what has caused such a tremendous air pollution in the country? The most common source of air pollutants in the world is the burning of fossil fuels which are coal, oil and gas. Once burned they release nitrogen oxide, sulphur oxide and other dangerous chemicals into the air. In South Sudan, oil spills are frequent and often enough, they catch fire.
An example is the burning oil spill at Unity that occurred in the afternoon on December 21, 2019. Another large burning incident took place on January 13, 2020 at the El Toor oil facility in Ruweng, where during an alleged welding incident, badly maintained oil pools caught fire, resulting in a massive oil waste or crude oil burn-off. The smoke these burning incidents produce travels hundreds if not thousands of kilometers and thus harming not just the people nearby the fire, but the country at large.
Another cause of air pollution in South Sudan is Charcoal burning and use of firewood in enclosed spaces. In cities like Juba, over 88% of the population relies on charcoal while in rural areas many people still use firewood. Both contribute to indoor air pollution when used in an enclosed house instead of out in the open. The smoke and carbon monoxide released in the air harms the respiratory systems and the eyes.
The other major cause of air pollution is garbage burning. Especially in town centers and cities. In South Sudan, the waste collection is poor. And people get tired of staying next to rotten and smelling waste, so they burn it. And given that municipal wastes consists of things such as plastics and harmful chemicals, the fumes released from burning this type of waste worsens the already bad situation.
Diesel powered generators are another major cause of air pollution in the country. South Sudan has among the lowest electricity connection in the world with over 90% of its population not having access to electricity. 70% of the businesses there rely on diesel powered generators as well as some households. The burning of diesel releases the same harmful gases that the burning of crude oil does. Harming the people nearby and contributing to the nation’s air quality problem.
Though not all cities suffer from traffic jams, vehicular emissions is another culprit for releasing obnoxious fumes into the air that contain nitrogen oxide. Forest fires are another reason for the reduced air quality in the country.
The effect of all these pollutants released into the air are bare for people to see. The first one is the increased incidences of respiratory problems. From Asthma to chest pains, to bronchitis. Skin problems are also common in oil prone areas that have experienced oil spills that resulted into fires. Air pollution also causes eye problems, from irritation to itchiness to long term damage.
On the environment, air pollution causes acid rain. The nitrogen oxide, the sulphates and all other harmful chemicals released into the air, help in the formation of clouds and when it rains, they come back down as acids. This leads to the discoloration and deterioration of roofs and other structures. It also finds its way into the food people eat causing harm to human bodies. The acid rain also acidifies agricultural soil and thus reducing its fertility.
Air pollution also contributes to global warming. All these gases form a blanket of air in the atmosphere in what is known as the greenhouse effect. This makes earth warmer and thus increases the temperature in what is known as global warming. This increased temperatures are to blame for the extreme weather patterns we are experiencing in the country from abnormal rains to increased incidences of floods.
But though air pollution is a situation that cannot be reversed, it can be prevented and controlled to avoid making the situation way worse than it is right now. There are countries whose cities are full of smog during the day due to air pollution to the extent that people buy air filters in their homes. South Sudan does not have to get there before deciding to do something about the air quality.
And this isn’t hard. For the oil spills, it should be mandatory for the oil companies to follow global standards of operation when doing their activities. Just because they are operating in a third world country does not give them the right to disregard the lives of the people who live there. And this means having Environmental Impact Assessments done and following the ideas therein, it means avoiding oil spills and even then, preparing to clean up immediately one is reported, and having fire trucks nearby. The Government should also heavily regulate them and ensure that they follow due procedure.
The other solutions are for people to adopt other sources of energy such as solar energy. This would save business owners some money while reducing air pollution. As for preparing food, there are energy saving stoves that still use charcoal or firewood but use very little and produces very little smoke. These energy saving cookers will spare our forests while reducing indoor pollution. The other solution is for the country to have an efficient waste management program so as to avoid the burning of waste.
South Sudan Environmental Advocates (SSEA) are skilled enough in any of these areas, from EIAs, to Waste Management strategies, to energy saving cookers, so any interested community, company or ministry can get in touch so that we can reduce this menace before it’s too late.
The author is the Founder and Executive director of South Sudan environmental Advocates (SSEA) and can be reach via his email: Philipdot57@gmail.com or Web: www.sseasouthsudan.org Tel: +211922104999.
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