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Al-Ahram Weekly 4 -10 February 1999 Issue No. 415 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 4 -10 February 1999 Issue No. 415
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Book Fair Economy Opinion Culture Features Living Travel Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Testing the wind
By Mahmoud BakrThe path to the implementation of Law 4/1994, known as the Environment Law, is fraught with obstacles, but progress is being made nonetheless. The need to regulate lead foundries and other polluting industries, cut down vehicle exhaust emissions and ensure cleaner water supplies often has environmentalists wondering which way to turn next. But the Ministry of Environment seems to be adopting a step-by-step approach that is yielding concrete, albeit still limited, results.
Most recently, Minister of Environment Nadia Ebeid inaugurated a network for monitoring the quality of air in Cairo. The network, which consists of two stations in Al-Ma'sara and Fom Al-Khalig, is a joint effort of the Egyptian government and USAID. The minister was accompanied by the governor of Qalyubiya, Sabri El-Beyali, the head of the district of Helwan, and Ibrahim Abdel-Gelil, the executive manager of the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA).
The aim of this network is to provide detailed information allowing for the identification of the capital's most highly polluted areas, and to assess the effectiveness of various pollution control activities. The Cairo Air Improvement Project (CAIP), which is funded by USAID, has established one station at Al-Ma'sara, in Anba Barsoum El-Erian Hospital, and the second in the Fom Al-Khalig park, near the Aqueduct. The two stations are part of a comprehensive network which will comprise 36 stations designed to monitor air quality and identify major trouble spots.
"The network," said Makram Ebeid, "will collect data on lead and particles suspended in the air, detect highly polluted areas and determine the impact and effectiveness of pollution control activities."
Air pollution monitoring is high on the minister of environment's agenda with 36 air monitoring stations are being presently opened throughout Cairo
photos:Adel Ahmed & Youssry Aql
EEAA executive manager Abdel-Gelil stated that the CAIP will back the EEAA's efforts to move lead foundries to industrial areas and to apply cleaner technology to reduce levels of lead pollution. Cooperation with the Ministry of Interior is also envisioned to establish standard levels for vehicles exhaust emissions. In an effort to address problems of pollution from vehicles, the CAIP aims to set up a system allowing for the examination of vehicles, the adjustment of engines, and the increased use of natural compressed gas as fuel for public buses.
The Environmental Information Monitoring Programme (EIMP), financed by the Danish development agency DANIDA, is also in the process of setting up a national network to monitor air quality. The programme will establish 39 monitoring stations employing automatic monitoring equipment to collect information and samples from areas where air pollution is highest. There are 12 stations in greater Cairo, six in Alexandria, eight in the Delta, four in Sinai and the Canal Zone and nine in Upper Egypt. These stations measure levels of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, non-methane hydrocarbons and suspended particulates.
Preliminary results of these and other tests show that the major source of air pollution in Cairo are diesel-fuelled vehicles.
Jim Howes, air monitoring manager at the CAIP, explained that the air monitoring stations cover an area stretching from Qaha in the north to Tibbin in the south. This area suffers from overcrowding, dense traffic, and the pollution problems that plague all urban and major industrial centres. At the Qaha station, a database allows monitors to measure pollution levels against other areas where the air does not usually contain the pollutants found in Cairo. The other stations will provide information through databases on lead and suspended particulate pollution in Cairo. Data will be collected to establish the rate of suspended particulate pollution most damaging to human health. After the five-year project comes to an end, management will be turned over to the Egyptian government.
Nagwa Shoeib, public awareness and communications manager at the CAIP, confirmed that the project aims to reduce lead pollution by 90 per cent and to bring down exhaust emissions from vehicles. Besides the conversion of public transport buses from diesel to compressed natural gas, the project aims to bring about strict adherence to the standard specifications established by the government among 80 per cent of vehicles. Within this context, a week-long training programme, scheduled to end this week, was organised to provide training for 36 participants, principally traffic department personnel and EEAA staff.
Shoeib explained that the training programme was designed to cover both theoretical and practical aspects of pollution control. Participants would learn about the importance of examining vehicles on the road, as well as the role of inspectors in sensitising drivers to health and environmental hazards resulting from air pollution. The trainees would then be divided into six groups, and given technical training on the use of examination equipment.
At the end of the programme, 30 inspectors will be selected from among the trainees to start work on Cairo's main roads. On 3 February, teams consisting of inspectors at the vehicle examination unit and a traffic policeman will wait on main roads. The inspectors will be responsible for informing drivers of the provisions of Law 4/1994.
The project will establish three motor examination and regulation centres at first; other centres established by the private sector or other parties. According to Shoeib, 20 per cent of vehicles on the road are in need of engine regulation.
Thirty sets for engine examination have been put at the disposal of inspectors, in addition to the equipment traffic police already use for examining vehicles. Inspectors are to hand drivers guidelines and advice for engine regulation, explaining the importance of adherence for environmental preservation and human safety. This measure, one of the many steps entailed by the implementation of Law 4/1994, is expected to enhance the fuel effectiveness of regulated engines by some 10 per cent.
