Air monitor records pollution level in Lahore 40 times above WHO limit

LAHORE, Pakistan - Air pollution in Pakistan’s second biggest city Lahore soared on Nov 2, around 40 times over the level deemed acceptable by the World Health Organisation (WHO), data from IQAir showed.

The level of deadly PM2.5 pollutants – fine particulate matter in the air that causes the most damage to health – peaked at 610, with a reading above 15 in a 24-hour period considered unhealthy by the WHO.

The air quality index, which measures a range of pollutants, also spiked at 1,067.

“We have never reached a level of 1,000,” Mr Jahangir Anwar, a senior environmental protection official in Lahore told AFP.

For days, Lahore has been enveloped by smog, a mix of fog and pollutants caused by low-grade diesel fumes, smoke from seasonal agricultural burning and winter cooling.

On Oct 30, the provincial environmental protection agency announced new restrictions in four “hot spots” in the city.

Tuk-tuks equipped with polluting two-stroke engines are banned, as are restaurants that barbecue without filters.

Government offices and private companies will have half their staff work from home starting on Nov 4.

Construction work has been halted and street and food vendors, who often cook over open fires, must close at 8pm.

“As a mother, I am full of anxiety,” 42-year-old Lilly Mirza told AFP from the choked city.

“Last year was not this bad, it was much better. Somebody needs to tell us what has happened. Did a pollution bomb explode somewhere?“

Ms Mirza said she felt “completely terrorised” after taking her son to a sports match in one of the pollution hot spots: “I came back home so stressed.”

Breathing the toxic air has catastrophic health consequences, with the WHO saying strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and respiratory diseases can be triggered by prolonged exposure.

Smog is particularly pronounced in winter, when cold, denser air traps emissions from poor-quality fuels used to power the city’s vehicles and factories at ground level.

The smell of toxic fumes has become familiar to 40-year-old painter Rehmat, who goes by one name.

“What can a poor painter like me do if the government can’t fix this? I will keep the mask on and work,” he said. AFP