adminSifelani Tsiko Agric, Environment & Innovations Editor
As Zimbabwe joined the rest of the international community to mark the World Environment Day on June 5, there is no doubt about the deepening problem of air pollution and lack of adequate implementation measures to curb it in the country.
Air pollution still remains one of the pressing environmental problems not only here but across the world.
This year, the United Nations chose air pollution as the theme for the 2019 World Environment Day.
China was chosen as the host of this year’s World Environment Day. The Asian country was chosen to highlight the global problem of air pollution.
China, like most other countries, is grappling with air pollution and is sharing its own experiences and efforts to address it.
The protection and improvement of the human environment is a major issue now and the commemoration of the World Environment Day offers Zimbabwe an opportunity to broaden its understanding of the far-reaching implications of air pollution both to humans, the environment and economy.
In Zimbabwe, the pollution problem has progressively worsened with most people living close to mines and factories emitting dust emissions suffering quietly for many decades with the polluters oblivious to their pain and anguish.
Dust emissions from major cement, fertiliser and mining plants coat vegetables, trees, grass, flowers, homes and clothes on the drying line with a thick layer of “dust”.
In rural areas and some parts of urban areas, indoor pollution is affecting many people who use woodfuel for cooking and heating.
Indoor pollution is also a major killer, causing 3,8 million early deaths across the world. About 80 percent of Zimbabwe’s population is rural and most of the people are exposed to both indoor and outdoor pollution when they cook using open fires with fuels such as wood, dung and charcoal and kerosene in wick lamps which also produce dangerous smoke.
Toxic air is now the biggest environmental risk of early death in Zimbabwe and most other countries across the world.
The World Health Organisation now estimates that it is responsible for one in nine of all fatalities.
The agency says it kills 7 million people a year, far more than HIV, tuberculosis and malaria combined.
In short, health experts now say it is “a global public health emergency”.
Air pollution can cause diseases such as stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and respiratory infections. Most Zimbabweans are dying daily due to these diseases.
All this calls on the country to take action to reduce the number of deaths caused by air pollution and to improve the overall quality of living.
Zimbabwe has perfect action plans on paper on how to reduce air pollution and enhance the air quality in the country.
However, implementation is largely lacking with little political will and resources to tackle the menace.
Most towns and cities in Zimbabwe don’t have air monitoring systems and even records to show the impact of air pollution on their citizens.
Mechanisms to control and manage pollution in the country are very limited, with air pollution still occurring frequently in mining, cement and fertiliser manufacturing areas.
At the same time, both public and Government departments still lack the necessary knowledge for its control and management.
Zimbabwe has not invested much in its financial, human and material resources to reduce the emissions of pollutants, promote scientific research and use of new technologies to support the protection of the atmosphere.
Numerous studies have been done in the country on air pollution with recommendations being put forward to the Government and relevant agencies.
However, lack of adoption of the recommendations and the absence of adequate resources to monitor air quality and implement measures to force companies to adopt cleaner technologies has made it difficult for the country to enhance its clean air policies.
In Africa, there are about 41 cities across 10 countries that track air quality, which is largely seen as the first step in defining the daily health risks that city residents face.
Zimbabwe is not among these countries.
It’s only in January last year when the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) received air pollution monitoring equipment worth €9 552,40 donated by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
This equipment is now being utilised by EMA as well as academic and research institutions for the purposes of monitoring air quality in the country.
This equipment is now helping EMA to characterise and define air pollution in the country as well as targeting pollution sources.
Announcing results on air quality using the donated equipment could help Zimbabwe understand the gravity of the problem and take specific measures to address this.
Apart from the lack of air monitoring systems in most towns and cities in Zimbabwe, a burgeoning demand for used imported vehicles and poor restrictions are causing traffic congestion and worsening air quality in most towns and cities in the country.
This unfettered importation of used vehicles, mainly from Asia, Europe and America, has made controlling traffic congestion and improving air quality in Zimbabwe difficult.
Environmentalists say Zimbabwe now needs second generation action, including technology leapfrog, scaling up of public transport, integrated multimodal transport options, car restraints and walking for clean air.
The rapid expansion in the vehicle population, mining and manufacturing and higher energy demand have resulted in high emission rates of major air pollutants resulting in a deterioration of the ambient air quality in major cities across the rapidly urbanising country.
In Zimbabwe, second-hand car imports gobbled US$469 million in 2014 alone despite a 2010 Government ban on the importation of vehicles older than five years to curb pollution.
According to the Zimbabwe Statistics Agency (ZimStat), more than 4 500 new vehicles were imported in 2013 and these mainly included brands such as Toyota, Nissan, Isuzu and Mazda, all from Japan.
Since the introduction of the multi-currency regime, commonly referred to as dollarisation in 2009, Zimbabwe has imported pre-owned vehicles worth about $5 billion.
However, car imports dropped by more than 80 percent since the introduction of duty on luxury vehicles in foreign currency in November 2018, according to the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra).
In 2018, alone, the pre-owned vehicles imports reached nearly 330 000 by November.
Zimbabwe needs to implement cleaner methods of transportation to reduce emissions from vehicles which are a driving factor in air pollution.
The country is now on the right path by investing more in the public transportation system.
Government recently purchased 300 buses — 200 from South Africa and 100 from China — for the Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco) to provide a cheaper alternative mode of transport for the commuting public.
The company is expected to take delivery of additional new buses, most of which will be deployed to rural areas.
If the Government fails to regulate vehicle imports and promote public transportation, the amount of pollution in the air will rise.
Promoting the growth of the Zupco fleet will help Zimbabwe to cut down on vehicle emissions.
Offering buses allows more people in one vehicle instead of more vehicles on the road putting out emissions.
Zimbabwe’s towns and cities should also take steps to provide options for walking and cycling to improve air quality.
Another solution cities and governments could take is to promote the uptake of energy efficient power.
By producing power in an efficient and clean way such as the use of solar energy, not only will the citizens be able to have power, but they will have clean air that will affect them more beneficially in the long run.
Efforts must also be made to promote the provision of clean and affordable fuels. The majority of energy production in Zimbabwe is from non-renewable energy sources.
This is one of the most polluting energy sources that must be minimised.
Access to cheap and reliable energy is the way to go.
Reducing air pollution saves lives and reduces the risks of many different diseases.
Air pollution must be both acknowledged and reduced despite its complicated nature.
Concerted efforts must be made to strengthen and support national commitments to support our rural communities who lack access to electricity and who still rely on unsustainable solid biomass as fuel for cooking and heating.
Looking after the environment is a collective responsibility and every Zimbabwean should take responsibility towards building resilience to climate change and calling for proactive activities for a sustainable environment.
We all need to become active participants in greening our surroundings, disposing of wastes properly, fighting against air pollution and using our resources efficiently.
Online Reporter