Kathmandu`s poor air quality
nepal has finally disclosed details about the air quality of its capital city, Kathmandu. Not surprisingly, the facts are worrisome. They also have wider ramifications for Nepal, which is an important international tourist centre. The data shows that air in the valley is mainly polluted by two sources: the 1,50,000 vehicles plying on the city roads and the smoke-belching brick kilns.
The ministry of population and environment made the information public in the last week of April. The air quality monitoring was done during the period between April 20-26 in six stations spread over residential, tourist, urban and valley areas of the city. Though data was recorded for oxides of sulphur and nitrogen as well as for particulate matter (pm) less than 2.5 microns, the government has revealed figures of particulate matter of 10 microns only.
Urban areas of the capital such as Lalitpur and Bhaktapur have the worst air quality, since the presence of pm is significantly higher than the proposed national standard of 120 microgrammes per cubic metre (