Air pollution causing diseases in Mazar

Solid wastes scattered around the city, growing number of cars, a widespread use of substandard fuel and lack of green areas are among the major causes of worsening air quality in the northern Mazar city, provincial officials and experts say.

Solid wastes scattered around the city, growing number of cars, a widespread use of substandard fuel and lack of green areas are among the major causes of worsening air quality in the northern Mazar city, provincial officials and experts say.
Amruddin, a resident of Mazar, is ill and doctors have diagnosed his illness to be linked to air pollution, he told Killid. “The weather is often dusty and smoky inside the city and because I work in the open air and inhale the polluted air I have got problems in my lungs,” said Amruddin.
Mohammad Nasir, an official at the department of environment protection in Balkh Province, said that there were too many air pollutants in Mazar. “Old car engines, low quality fuel used in the cars, the brick kilns and the public baths which burn wastes, and many other factors are contributing to the worsening air pollution here,” Nasir said.
Weak waste management is another challenge which not only damages the environment but causes contagious diseases. Diarrhoea – a disease which kills thousands of Afghan children every year – is mostly originating from contaminated water. In January, the Afghanistan National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) advised people in Kabul to use masks or other protective devices during the morning and evening rush hours in order to protect their health against the air pollution. Such an advice has not been given to the people in Mazar yet.
Mohammad Yonus Muqim, the mayor of Mazar, said that the prevalent use of coal and wood had to be blamed for the air pollution. “People burn coal and wood for cooking, heating and different other purposes and that create a lot of smoke which certainly damage the air quality,” said Muqim. According to the mayor, a lot of people could not afford propane gas the use of which does not create smoke and thus considered as less harmful to the environment.
“The gas is expensive but wood and coal are affordable so we use them,” said Abdul Aziz, the owner of a restaurant.
NEPA and the Health Ministry say, nationwide air pollution causes up to 3,000 deaths a year and spreads skin, respiratory and eye diseases, and even cancer. Up to 75 percent of the air pollution is linked to transport – too many cars. To discourage the use of state-owned vehicles and reduce pollution, the government announced that Thursdays are to be public holidays until March 2011. Afghanistan normally only observes Friday as a day of rest. Critics, however, say the extra holiday is benefiting no one, as officials tend to use government vehicles for private purposes on days off.