Review of Urban Air Quality in Sub-Saharan Africa Region

Abstract

National response to air pollution (continued) Action plans. According to the deliberations during the Workshop on air quality in 2005 a national action plan is being elaborated and priorities set for the improvement of air quality. Fuel standards. Fuel specifications for lead-free petrol of research octane rating 91 (RON 91) are promulgated in Decree No 155/2006/MEM and shown in Table Madagascar_2 in Section 6. There are also fuel specifications for lead-free petrol of RON 95 (see Table Madagascar_3 in Section 6) and RON 87 (see Table Madagascar _4 in Section 6), promulgated in Decrees No. 24.538 and 24.540 as of 21.12.2004. At the same date fuel specifications for diesel were set in Decree No. 24.539 and are compiled in Table Madagascar_5 in Section 6. Emission standards. According to Decree No 6941/2000 the exhaust of diesel vehicles is controlled by measuring with an opacimeter (XR 743 NF) and that of petrol-driven vehicles with a gas analyser (XR 842), as approved by the government. The emission standards for diesel-driven vehicles are laid down in Table Madagascar_6 in Section 6; those for petrol-driven vehicles are laid down in Table Madagascar_7 in Section 6. Projects/Programmes. The Ministry of Energy, the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Transport, the city of Antananarivo and the three offices are developing a study on the emissions of all sectors relevant in Antananarivo, i.e. transport sector, urban waste sector, industrial and manufacturing sector, and the energy sector. This study follows the frame of other similar studies that have been performed in Abidjan (Ivory Coast), Cotonou (Benin), Dakar (Senegal), Douala (Cameroon) and Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) under the umbrella of the CAI-SSA.

Why participation matters for air quality studies: risk perceptions, understandings of air pollution and mobilization in a poor neighborhood in Nairobi, Kenya

“…The urban poor are already vulnerable as they also face indoor air pollution and live in close proximity to more pollution sources like highways, open burning of waste or industry. 15,19,20 Inadequate planning and service provision in African cities also means that poor pedestrians who cannot afford motorized transport are often forced to walk near streets full of traffic and vehicle emissions. 21 Long term air quality monitoring is rare in SSA.…”

A Nairobi experiment in using low cost air quality monitors

“…In sub-Saharan Africa, air quality data often do not exist, and regulations and laws are often not in place to curb air pollution; or if in place, are not implemented, even though existing research shows that the annual mean fine particulate matter in these cities often exceeds World Health Organisation standards (Njee et al, 2016;Petkova et al, 2013). Few African cities operate air monitoring systems, and most cities lack any air quality monitoring capabilities (Schwela, 2012a, Njee et. al 2016.…”

“…Although systematic, long term monitoring is missing in most African cities, existing studies show a serious and growing problem in urban air quality due to rapid urbanization coupled with industrialization, increasing motorization and the continued use of biomass fuel as the household energy source (UNEP, 2016;Lindén et al, 2012;Fiore et al, 2012;Schwela, 2012b). The worst urban air pollution may actually be in subSaharan African countries (Schwela, 2012a).…”

“…The worst urban air pollution may actually be in subSaharan African countries (Schwela, 2012a). There is thus an urgent need to monitor urban air quality in this region so that the health effects of pollutants can be better understood and quantified, leading to cost-effective abatement strategies and greater public awareness and pressure.…”

“…For many African cities, cost is one barrier to investing in air quality monitoring (Amegah and Agyei-Mensah, 2016 ;Schwela, 2012a). The cost of reference air quality monitoring systems (AQMS) is high (costing between US $5000 and US $200,000 for each AQM), and training and AQMS maintenance, as well as managing and analysing the data can also be expensive (Kumar et al, 2015;Mead et al, 2013).…”