Respro® Bulletin Board

Indonesia air pollution: Tens of thousands of lives at risk from new coal plants

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

The Indonesian government’s plan to build 117 new coal-fired power plants could cause tens of thousands of premature deaths, according to a new analysis.

Harvard University researchers say pollution from those coal power plants in the pipeline will put 21,200 lives at risk — and that’s on top of the 6,500 premature deaths caused in the country by the existing 42 coal plants.

Add to that the 600 people killed outside the country by Indonesian coal pollution and it’s a grand total of 28,300 coal-fired deaths a year.

Each large new coal power plant (1000MW capacity) is expected to kill around 600 Indonesians a year.

Indonesia’s Energy Ministry is also considering how to fulfill a new ambitious plan to add 35GW of new power capacity by 2019.

If they opt for coal – as looks to be the case – Havard will probably have to revise up that 28,000 premature deaths figure.

The thing that’s killing them all is the pollution particulate PM2.5 which is so small it can get into the lungs and bloodstream and cause all kinds of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.

PM2.5 is made up of mix of pollutants like nitrogen oxide (NOx) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) which coal-fired power plants emit.

The human cost of coal

The Harvard research is basis of a Greenpeace report called The Human Cost of Coal Power, in which a detailed breakdown of the projected deaths is provided.

With all those currently under construction coal plants, the number dying inside Indonesia and out from heart disease, lung cancer, and strokes will triple, with obstructive pulmonary disease claiming nearly four time as many lives.

Acute respiratory infections are expected to kill around 400 young children a year.

And Indonesia is planning on massively increasing its coal capacity further, though the report hasn’t got any concrete figures on this latest expansion.

President Jokowi is planning for 35GW of new power plants by 2019, 22 of which will probably be coal-fired (62%).

(Credit: Greenpeace)

Coal accounts for around 50% of Indonesia’s energy-related SO2 emissions, 30% of PM10 emissions, and 28% of NOx emissions, according to 2008 data.

Those figures are probably much higher now since coal use doubled from 2008 to 2014, and its share in the energy mix increased from 24% to 35%.

And, as the graph above illustrates, Indonesia has incredibly lax air pollution standards — a very weak 150μg/m3 daily ceiling for PM10 and no limit at all for PM2.5.

Smog-stricken China has standards that far outstrip Indoensia’s. Plus there’s almost no air quality monitoring.

Less coal going to China

Indonesia’s doubling down on coal comes as its exports have fallen 18% so far this year as best customer China begins to wean itself off the dirty fossil fuel — shipments to China have fallen by 49%

Instead the historically coal-exporting country will use the fossil to fuel its own power sector, the capacity of which grew 78% from 1993 to 2003 — and nearly half of that came from coal.

via Indonesia air pollution: Tens of thousands of lives at risk from new coal plants – Energydesk.

Posted in Air Quality, Asia | Tagged Air Pollution, Indonesia, NOx, PM2.5, Sulfur Dioxide SO2 | Leave a comment

Could controlling fire emissions in industrial plantations be key to improving air quality in Equatorial Asia?

Posted on August 17, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

Researchers have combined satellite observations with atmospheric modelling to calculate how fires associated with industrial concessions in the Sumatra and Kalimantan regions of Indonesia affect air quality across Equatorial Asia.

The findings, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, show that these industrial plantation-related fires make up almost half of the total fire emissions in Sumatra and Kalimantan.

The researchers, based at Columbia University, USA, and Harvard University, USA, studied the oil palm, logging, and timber (for wood pulp and paper) industries, and demonstrated that fires located in timber and oil palm concessions in Sumatra and Kalimantan, respectively, make the biggest contributions to air pollution.

“Our results show the importance in limiting the use of fire by these industries,” explains Dr Miriam Marlier, of Columbia University, a lead author on the paper. “Especially in areas of land particularly susceptible to burning, such as degraded peatlands and deforested areas.”

Air quality in Indonesia is an important topic, with the country ranking 112 of 178 in the 2014 Environmental Performance Index1, and the country being the 3rd highest producer of greenhouse gases in the world2.

Proximity to the polluting areas plays an important role — the lower emissions from Sumatra had a greater effect on Singapore air quality than the higher emission levels observed in Kalimantan.

“Limiting the use of fires by these industries — particularly the palm oil and timber concessions — will obviously improve things.” continues Dr Marlier. “Failing this, limiting the re-classification of logging concessions, where we observed low fire activity, to oil palm and timber concessions will limit the public health impacts of these emissions.”

Dr Marlier and her colleagues next plan is to see how these results are effected by yearly climate variations, and estimate the public health costs of air quality degradation caused by these industries.

via Could controlling fire emissions in industrial plantations be key to improving air quality in Equatorial Asia? — ScienceDaily.

Posted in Air Quality, Asia, Singapore | Tagged Air Pollution, HAZE, Indonesia, Kalimantan, SGhaze, Singapore, Sumatra | Leave a comment

Caring for the Air – Forest Fires, Air Quality Advisories, and Why Fraser Valley Smog is Worse in the Summer

Posted on August 17, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

Forest fires outside our region are having an impact on air quality in the Lower Fraser Valley this summer. Elevated concentrations of fine particulate matter from those fires resulted in an air quality advisory being issued for the eastern parts of the Fraser Valley from Aug. 12 to Aug 13. During this type of advisory it is recommended that people with chronic underlying medical conditions avoid strenuous activities. Advisories also offer tips for individuals to reduce their own health risks and help improve the quality of our air. But even without forest fires, air quality in the Lower Mainland can deteriorate in the summer. Here’s why sunlight and heat can equal smog in our region, especially in the Lower Fraser Valley.

Metro Vancouver is part of the Lower Fraser Valley, an area of land located between the Coast Mountains to the north and the Cascades to the south. Ground-level ozone can form in this valley when nitrogen oxides react with volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. Since sunlight and heat are important ingredients in this reaction, smog can become an issue during the summer on hot, sunny days with stagnant weather.

Sources of Smog

In the presence of sunlight, nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) react together and produce ground-level ozone, one of the main components of smog. The primary sources of NOx are cars, trucks, buses, ships and other non-road equipment, and heating of buildings, while the main human-caused sources of VOCs are personal care and cleaning products, solvents, paints, non-road equipment, cars, trucks and vehicle refuelling at service stations.

Due to warmer temperatures and restricted air circulation, summertime ground-level ozone tends to be higher in the eastern portions of Metro Vancouver, such as Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows and Langley, as well as the Fraser Valley Regional District.

Reducing VOC Emissions

Scientists have confirmed that VOC are the critical limiting factor to suppress ground-level ozone formation in Metro Vancouver, so Metro Vancouver is working to develop policy and program options to reduce VOC emissions. In the meantime, these are some steps you can take to go VOC-free or low-VOC in your daily life:

Switch to a low-VOC option: Where possible, look for the low-VOC option for household products. Paints are an example of a product where low-VOC latex-based options are readily available substitutes. For other products, such as nail polish remover, low-VOC options are available, but will require some sleuthing to find.
Avoid the aerosol: The propellant used in aerosol cooking sprays, hairsprays, deodorants, and other household products are VOC – typically propane, n-butane, and isobutene. This means that in addition to the VOC in the product itself, additional VOC are required to create the spray mist. Opt for hand pump or compressed-air based sprays; or switch to direct application versions, such as roll-on perfumes and deodorants.
Store smart: When storing products that contain VOC, do so in tightly-sealed, original containers. For gasoline, replace your old gas cans with cans that comply with emission and spill control standards. Or better yet, buy small amounts as you need it, so you don’t have to store these products!
Recycle: Properly dispose of products containing VOC. Many of these products are considered household hazardous wastes and should be disposed of at special facilities. For more information, see http://www. metrovancouverrecycles.org to find out where to dispose of various products.
Say goodbye to gas: Your gasoline vehicle is likely your most significant source of VOC in your home. Do away with gasoline altogether, by switching to electricity for your lawn and garden equipment and your vehicle. Or go manual and get exercise too!

Learn more about Ozone and Smog

You can learn more about the interrelationships between VOC, nitrogen oxide, smog, and ground level ozone by downloading the 2015 Caring for the Air report (FOCUS on VOC – page 12).

Track The Current Air Quality in Your Neighbourhood

This web-app AirMap displays air quality and weather data from the Lower Fraser Valley Air Quality Monitoring Network in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Metro Vancouver operates this network in cooperation with the Fraser Valley Regional District, Environment Canada and other partners.

Air quality advisory information and real-time air quality readings for Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley communities, along with potential health impacts can be found at:
http://www.metrovancouver.org/services/air-quality/emissions-monitoring/monitoring/current/Pages/default.aspx

via http://metrovancouverblog.org/2015/08/14/caring-for-the-air-forest-fires-air-quality-advisories-and-why-fraser-valley-smog-is-worse-in-the-summer/

Posted in Air Quality, USA & Canada | Tagged Air Pollution, Canada, forest fire, ground level ozone, Lower Fraser Valley, NOx, Vancouver, VOC | Leave a comment

Air pollution ‘much worse than thought’ with toddlers hit hardest

Posted on August 17, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

Air pollution in Hammersmith & Fulham could be far worse than previously thought, a new study has revealed.

And the results of tests carried out by hfcyclists – a branch of the London Cycling Campaign based in and focused on Hammersmith & Fulham – show babies and toddlers could be hit hardest by poisonous traffic fumes.

The community group carried out tests at two of the borough’s traffic hot spots, the Hammersmith Gyratory and Shepherd’s Bush Green, and found air pollution was up to 30% higher at pushchair-height raising concern about the health impact on young children.

Currently, the council measures air pollution through diversion tubes placed at a height of 3m to help prevent tampering.

But concerns that current measurements might be underestimating the severity of the situation appear to have been proved correct by hfcyclists, who suspected concentration levels of pollution would have decreased from that height, meaning measurements at 3m would give lower concentrations levels of air pollution than actually experienced by people.

Overall around Hammersmith Broadway and Shepherd’s Bush Green, the group found most nitrogen dioxide levels at 3m to be more than twice the legal limit of 40 micrograms per cubic metre (40µg/m3).

But diffusion tubes placed at different heights revealed showed different results. Testers placed 50cm high, similar to a simple pushchair, measured nitrogen dioxide levels about 30% higher than at 3m.

And at 80cms, the height of a taller buggy or young child, nitrogen dioxide levels were found to be about 25% higher than at three metres.

Group chairman John Griffiths said he was concerned at the damage being caused to health of children: “We knew that air pollution around the Hammersmith Gyratory and Shepherd’s Bush was bad but we are alarmed by just how bad it is. It’s worrying to think how this might be affecting children whose lungs are developing and particular susceptible to permanent damage.

“Our experiment highlights that urgent action is needed to reduce air pollution and in particular get more people walking and cycling instead of driving.”

He urged Transport for London, which is planning to make changes to the gyratory, to create more lanes for cyclists at the expense of polluting traffic.

Andrea Lee, Healthy Air London coordinator at ClientEarth, which carried out the work with hfcyclists, said: “A recent study from the Mayor of London has revealed that almost 10,000 early deaths each year in London are caused by air pollution.

“Air pollution affects us all but some members of society, such as young children, older people and people with heart and respiratory conditions, are more vulnerable to the impacts. The Mayor, councils and the UK Government need to do more to protect people from illegal levels of air pollution.”

via Air pollution ‘much worse than thought’ with toddlers hit hardest – Get West London.

Posted in Air Quality, Europe, London, UK | Tagged Air Pollution, Hammersmith & Fulham, UK | Leave a comment

Respro® Masks FAQ: Do the filters need replacing, if so, how often?

Posted on August 14, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

Do the filters need replacing, if so, how often?

Yes the filters do need replacing.

1. The effective working life of the City™ filter depends on a number of factors, such as; the breathing rate of the user; ambient levels of pollution; the length of time the filter is actively working; hygiene levels. Taking these factors into account we recommend that the filter should be replaced every month or every 69 hours, whichever is sooner.

2. Replacement of the Sportsta™ filter should be carried out every month or when the filter becomes noticeably discoloured.

For more frequently asked questions, go to Respro® Mask FAQs

Do you need to change the filter in your Respro® Face Mask? Watch this video to learn the correct procedure.

Posted in Air Quality | Tagged Respro® Masks FAQ | Leave a comment

Air pollution in China is killing 4,000 people every day, a new study finds

Posted on August 14, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

Physicists at the University of California have found 1.6 million people in China die each year from heart, lung and stroke problems because of polluted air

Air pollution is killing about 4,000 people in China a day, accounting for one in six premature deaths in the world’s most populous country, a new study finds.

Physicists at the University of California, Berkeley, calculated about 1.6 million people in China die each year from heart, lung and stroke problems because of incredibly polluted air, especially small particles of haze. Earlier studies put the annual Chinese air pollution death toll at one to two million but this is the first to use newly released air monitoring figures.

The study, to be published in the journal PLOS One, blames emissions from the burning of coal, both for electricity and heating homes. It uses real air measurements and then computer model calculations that estimate heart, lung and stroke deaths for different types of pollutants.

Study lead author Robert Rohde said 38% of the Chinese population lived in an area with a long-term air quality average the US Environmental Protection Agency called “unhealthy.”

“It’s a very big number,” Rohde said. “It’s a little hard to wrap your mind around the numbers. Some of the worst in China is to the south-west of Beijing.”

To put Chinese air pollution in perspective, the most recent American Lung Association data shows that Madera, California, has the highest annual average for small particles in the United States. But 99.9% of the eastern half of China has a higher annual average for small particle haze than Madera, Rohde said.

“In other words nearly everyone in China experiences air that is worse for particulates than the worst air in the US,” Rohde said.

In a 2010 document the EPA estimated between 63,000 and 88,000 people died in the US from air pollution. Other estimates ranged from 35,000 to 200,000.

Unlike the US air pollution in China is worst in the winter because of burning of coal to heat homes and weather conditions that keeps dirty air closer to the ground, Rohde said. Beijing will host the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Outside scientists praised the research. Jason West at the University of North Carolina said he expected “it will be widely influential”.

Allen Robinson at Carnegie Mellon University said in an email that parts of the United States, such as Pittsburgh, used to have almost as bad air but have become much cleaner “through tough regulations combined with large collapse of heavy industry”.

As China started to clean up its air, limiting coal use, it would also reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, the chief global warming gas, Rohde said.

via Air pollution in China is killing 4,000 people every day, a new study finds | World news | The Guardian.

Posted in Air Quality, Asia, China | Tagged Air Pollution, China | Leave a comment

UK lobbying for even weaker EU air pollution laws, leaked papers show

Posted on August 13, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

Conservative government argues that already watered-down laws to limit toxic pollution that causes tens of thousands of deaths each year will cause job losses in the coal mining sector

Leaked documents show the UK is pushing for watered-down EU air pollution laws to be weakened further, arguing they would cause pit closures leading to substantial job losses and the need to import coal.

The EU rules could help curb toxic nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions, although campaigners criticised them following revelations that they were partly drafted by the same companies they were meant to regulate.

But a confidential government submission to Brussels, seen by the Guardian, says that the UK would have to import coal from Russia, Colombia and South Africa to meet the new standards, because British coal has such a high sulphur content.

This “would therefore lead to the loss of the principal market for UK coal and the closure of the UK’s coal mines,” the paper says. “The mine closures would also lead to substantial job losses – directly and indirectly within the supply chain – in areas of the UK with significant levels of unemployment and socio-economic deprivation.”

However, studies suggest that air pollution hits poor people in urban areas and ethnic minorities hardest, and its true early death toll could be even higher than the statistics suggest.

The new pollution rules would also be costly, risk energy security, and prevent indigenous coal being used in new power plants fitted with carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, the UK warns.

The only leading British politician to publicly make such a strong case for coal has been Jeremy Corbyn, the leftwing frontrunner in the Labour leadership contest, who foresees CCS potentially enabling a return to mining in South Wales, and benefiting working class communities. Last week a Welsh council rejected plans for a new opencast coal mine.

Greenpeace argued that because two-thirds of fossil fuel reserves must be left underground to avoid climate breakdown, the government should offer retraining and financial support to miners, instead of a lifeline to their bosses.

“To protect the profits of a few coal-burning energy firms the ‘greenest government ever’ is lobbying to water down air pollution rules that could save hundreds of lives and millions in NHS costs,” said Greenpeace’s head of energy, Daisy Sands. “Not content with locking consumers into higher bills by undermining the cheapest clean energy sources and home efficiency, ministers are now putting their health at risk by letting big polluters off the hook.”

The new EU rules are expected to be agreed early next year, before coming into force in 2020.

In April, the supreme court gave the government until the end of the year to present a plan for cleaning up the country’s polluted air, which is responsible for 29,000 early deaths every year. The government is expected to announce its plan for bringing the UK into line with the EU’s existing air quality directive next month.

The UK has been in breach of the EU’s nitrogen dioxide (NO2) pollution limits since 2010 and will not meet them until 2030 on current trends, according to government figures, raising the spectre of fines of up to £300m a year.

Alan Andrews, a lawyer for ClientEarth, which brought the supreme court case against the government, expressed dismay at the pro-coal stance in the leaked papers.

“It suggests that they are not taking the supreme court decision seriously and are not making a genuine attempt to achieve the emissions reductions as soon as possible,” he told the Guardian. “We would seriously consider further legal action if that is the case, after we have analysed the new plan.”

via UK lobbying for even weaker EU air pollution laws, leaked papers show | Environment | The Guardian.

Posted in Air Quality, Europe, UK | Tagged Air Pollution, Nitrogen Dioxide NO2, NOx, Sulfur Dioxide SO2, UK | Leave a comment

How do fire emissions from industrial plantations affect air quality in Equatorial SEA?

Posted on August 12, 2015 by Respro® UK Ltd

The findings, published today in the journal Environmental Research Letters, show that these industrial plantation-related fires make up almost half of the total fire emissions in Sumatra and Kalimantan.

Proximity to the polluting areas plays an important role—the lower emissions from Sumatra had a greater effect on Singapore air quality than the higher emission levels observed in Kalimantan.

“Limiting the use of fires by these industries—particularly the palm oil and timber concessions—will obviously improve things.” continues Dr Marlier. “Failing this, limiting the re-classification of logging concessions, where we observed low fire activity, to oil palm and timber concessions will limit the public health impacts of these emissions.”

via How do fire emissions from industrial plantations affect air quality in Equatorial SEA?.