Addis Ababa is the capital city of not only Ethiopia but also Africa as it is a seat of the African Union and several other diplomatic missions. While these and other factors provide an opportunity for the city to further develop, it also faces several challenges, among which pollution is the major one.
Addis has become one the fastest growing urban areas where air quality is affected mainly due to increased vehicle emissions, traffic road dust, industrial developments, construction boom, and related environmental management malpractices. The deteriorating air quality has become a serious concern for Addis’ residents.
Though Addis Ababa is located on the foothills of the ‘Entoto’ Mountain’s vegetation cover, basically outdated/old vehicles continue to release pollutants into the microclimatic atmosphere with serious health and other undesired effects on those exposed to it. Air pollution has been given the least consideration as compared to land and water pollution in the city. This is because of policymakers’ common assumption that the level of air pollution is below the danger zone, an assumption not backed by empirical evidence.
The other challenge in withstanding the issue is that the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Commission in general and Addis Ababa’s Environmental Protection Authority (AAEPA) do not possess sufficient and updated documentation on the extent of the problem. In Ethiopia, few cities have installed a better system to withstand air pollution. For instance, there is better urban environment management in the city of Bahir Dar, the capital city of Amhara State.
The whole pavement on the roads of Bahir Dar is covered with a palm tree and other ornamental vegetations which could enable its peoples even to adapt to a microclimate change. Local air pollution levels in Ethiopia’s major urban centers such as Addis Ababa seem too negligible to warrant any cause for alarm.
Whereas, surprisingly, there is minimal, improper or inadequate vegetation cover on the pavements of Addis Ababa city’s roads where basically vehicular emissions cause a rapid deterioration of ambient air quality and the environment with the resulting threat to human health.
Saeid Abdela, Director of Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Directorate at AAEPA says that transport sector is the main source of air pollution while biomass, waste, incineration, factories, and dust from construction sector taken as a lower source of air pollution in the city.
Importation of a large number of secondhand vehicles, scarcity of efficient road networks, out of order vehicle engines and poor or ineffective annual vehicles’ inspections are major causes for severe vehicular air pollution in the city, adds Saeid.
“We import lower quality oil by cheap price. This by itself has its own contribution to air pollution. There is a quality variation between what Europe countries are importing and what other African countries are importing. Some countries do not import oil/petrol of low quality,” he underlines.
Vehicular-Smogless Air for Ethiopia (V-SAFE) in collaboration with AAEPA conducted a baseline study on the Effect of Motor Vehicles on Air Pollution in Addis Ababa about six years ago. V-SAFE has undertaken the study to quantify the contribution made by motor vehicles to Addis Ababa’s air pollution and its health and environmental ramifications.
The study shows that the ambient Hydrocarbon (HC) levels are extremely high at ‘Kera’ and ‘Urael’ test sites at the center of the city, even on the most passive days of the week (approximately between fourteen to seventy-nine times higher than the 3-hour USA standard).
This indicates that the ozone levels in most congested and high traffic volume areas of Addis Ababa could be unacceptably high. Routine observations of the daily ambient air conditions of Addis Ababa such as low visibility, the heaviness of the air and brownish haze covering the city indicate the steady presence of excess atmospheric photochemical smog.
Overall, the 1-hour Carbon Monoxide (CO) averages for most test days at both test locations were two to six times higher than the World Health Organization Standard (WHO); seven to nineteen times the Chinese Standard and two to five times the Brazilian Standard, according to the study.
Hence, epidemiological studies have correlated high CO concentrations with human health effects, such as heart disease, childhood developmental abnormalities, and stillbirths.
The study also shows that the 6-hour average Particulate Matter (PM) readings from both test sites for most test days were approximately four to seventeen times higher than the comparable USA reading. An excessively high hydrocarbon (due to incomplete combustion) causes carbon monoxide emissions to be high also, according to the study.
Hydrocarbon emissions result from spark plug misfires, incorrect ignition timing, wrong airfuel mixture, etc. Thus the finding suggests that most of the tested vehicles’ engines, regardless of the test site, were functioning with some sort of ignition and fuel delivery system problems.
It is shocking that 50 percent of the vehicles tested produced about 90 percent of the HC and CO emissions. Both ambient and vehicular HC, CO and PM levels are well above worldwide standards for human and environmental health. The study has found that improperly functioning motor vehicles are major contributors to Addis Ababa’s air pollution.
Even though the study has not been updated, considering the increase in the number of vehicles, one can assume that the current situation is worse than the previous. Because there has not been taken a significant measure by the government to avert the ongoing air pollution havocs in the city. “AAEPA is expected to update the previous baseline study.
The federal government has been undertaking climate change mitigation actions like introducing cycle transport system and electrified light rail transit transport service,” Saeid says. However, the government has not yet taken meaningful action in dealing with outdated vehicles from the city and banning the importation of secondhand or used vehicles and low-quality oil/petrol.
There are two standards regarding air pollution at the national level, noted Saeid; Air Quality Standard which measure air pollution in the atmosphere and Emission Standard to measure particulate matters emitted from vehicles.
“AAEPA still faces several challenges in discharging its responsibilities including supply shortage when it comes to air pollution measurement instruments, high employees’ turnover, Saeid Abdela – Director of Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation(AAEPA) and the federal government’s interference in its independence in enforcing laws,” he underlines. Further, the Authority does not have any instrument or technology to measure the level of pollution in the city.
In fact, it is only the US embassy that owns such an instrument in the entire city, Saeid confesses. AAEPA in collaboration with United State Environment Protection Agency (USEPA) has developed Air Quality Management Project aimed at studying air pollution levels and related health problems in order to prepare a controlling plan.
‘We are also working with other international organization like C40. C40, in which Addis Ababa is a member city, has been giving training and hired consultancy organization for us in the area,’ Saeid adds. Besides, Saeid notes, as response to the problems, under the country’s strategy of Climate Resilient Green Economy (CRGE), AAEPA has prepared new organizational structure and mitigation and adaptation plan by identifying sources of pollution in the city. ‘Steering committee has been also formed which incorporate sector offices led by Mayor of the City Government of Addis Ababa.” Editor’s Note: The writer is a freelance journalist and communication expert. He can be reached at dagimtt2008@gmail.com
Herald March 21/2019
BY DAGIM TEREFE
