Reuters reported on the 14th (local time) that Lahore in northeastern Pakistan was ranked as the city with the worst air quality in the world. This is the content of the ‘World Air Quality Report 2022’, which was analyzed by measuring and analyzing the concentration of fine dust (PM 2.5) in 7,300 places in 131 countries by the Swiss air purifier company IQ Air.
The level of fine dust in Lahore was 97.4 micrograms per cubic meter, almost 20 times the World Health Organization’s recommended level of 5 micrograms or less per cubic meter. Locally operated brick factories, along with low quality diesel fuel and burning of rubbish in rural areas, have been identified as sources of fine dust. China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Hotan (94.3) and India’s Biwadi (92.7) and Delhi (92.6) were also surveyed as cities with the lowest air quality.
On the other hand, Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, USA, was found to have the best air quality. Roanoke Rapids is a small town along a lake, and the concentration of fine dust was only 0.6 μg per cubic meter. It is an analysis that the measures to control the concentration of carbon monoxide, ozone, and fine dust that have been implemented at the state level for over 20 years have borne fruit. Oateshorn in South Africa (0.8) and Geraldton (1.1) on Australia’s west coast were also selected as cities with good air quality.
The country with the worst air quality was Chad (89.7), a coal country in northern Africa. Korea (18.3) was at a lower level than the United States (8.9) and Japan (9.1), but was cleaner than China (30.6). Among major domestic cities, Cheonan (30.3) had the highest concentration of fine dust. The reason was that it was affected by fine dust from China due to the influence of the west wind, and that about half of the old coal power plants in Korea were concentrated in the Chungcheongnam-do region. Seoul (18.3) had a higher concentration of fine dust than Jeju (15.2) and Busan (15.3).
