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Jakarta looks to new partnership for solutions to air pollution
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Thick smog blankets high rise buildings in Jakarta's business district of Jl. Sudirman on Oct. 9, 2019. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
W
ith traffic, coal-fired power plants and ongoing construction projects continuing to pollute Jakarta’s air, the city administration is seeking new solutions to improve air quality through a recently launched partnership.
Air quality experts from Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) recently studied the concentration of PM2.5, fine particulate matter that have a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers, in air samples taken from three locations across Jakarta – Gelora Bung Karno sports complex, Kebon Jeruk and Lubang Buaya. The study aimed to determine more accurately the sources of air pollution in Jakarta.
The study was conducted as part of a new partnership between the Jakarta administration, New York-based charitable foundation Bloomberg Philanthropies and global health organization Vital Strategies to enhance the availability and use of air quality data, formulate policies and educate the public about the health impacts of air pollution.
The research was conducted during the wet season from October 2018 to March 2019 and the dry season from July to September 2019.
It found that vehicular emissions were the biggest source of air pollution, contributing to about 32 to 41 percent of air pollution during the wet season and 42 to 57 percent in the dry season.
Other sources were open burning of biomass and other fuels at 11 percent in the wet season and 9 percent during the dry season. Dust raised by passing vehicles on paved roads also contributed to pollution, at 1 to 6 percent during the rainy season and 9 percent during the dry season.
Read also: Greater Jakarta air increasingly polluted
