Metro Manila needs better air monitoring to cope with pollution-related health risks, experts say.
As Metro Manila continues to work hard to deal with air pollution, it is necessary to raise public awareness of health risks through more comprehensive and comprehensive air monitoring, according to experts on Wednesday.
Experts echoed these emotions during the launch of the Manila Respiratory Metropolis, a coalition consisting of the Manila Observatory, the School of Medicine and Public Health (ASMPH), Ateneo Business Insights Laboratory Laboratory Development (Build), and the Clarity Scrarity movement, a technology provider.
“(We must) make the threat of air pollution more obvious to the community and stakeholders,” said Dr. Annelle Raphayette Chua, head of the Air Quality and Climate Research Institute (ACRI), ASMPH’s Environmental Quality Focus.
“So, one of the most powerful approaches is real-time air quality monitoring, accessible to all our stakeholders and for everybody’s perusal reading locally and nationwide,” she added.
Ms. Chua cited a report from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) that air pollution is one of the main causes of premature deaths, causing 8.1 million deaths worldwide in 2021.
Continuous exposure to air pollution can lead to serious health complications, accounting for 30% of deaths from lower respiratory tract infections, 28% of ischemic heart disease, and 48% of deaths related to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
In Metro Manila, more than 13 million residents are at risk of frequent exposure to pollution levels exceeding global safety standards.
Ingr said that given these potential health risks, access to real-time air quality data has become even more critical to helping residents protect themselves. Ethel Garcia, Account Manager for Clarity Sports in Ocean and Oceania.
“The weather is hyperlocal… with air quality, so is the case. Some areas in Quezon City may be at an unhealthy level, but maybe in Ayala Alabang, it’s not unhealthy – good,” Ms. Garcia told Business World.
“So we want to publish it to the public because the public is often affected by that,” she added.
Metro Manila’s main purpose is to install advanced and regionally-wide integrated air monitoring systems that allow public access to the results through the website.
Ms. Garcia said this would allow for more credible, cohesive results that would better identify sources of pollution and air quality levels in specific areas. – EDG Adrian A. Eva
