Air quality in Tulancingo

What is the current level of air pollution in Tulancingo?

Tulancingo is the second-largest city in the Mexican state of Hidalgo. It can be found in the south eastern part of the state approximately 93 kilometres from Mexico City. There was a census conducted in 2010 that estimated the population to be approximately 152,000 people.

At the beginning of 2022, Tulancingo was experiencing a period of “Moderate” air quality with a US AQI reading of 53. This United States Air Quality Index number is calculated using the levels of six of the most prolific air pollutants, such as sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, carbon dioxide and monoxide and both sizes of particulate matter, which are PM2.5 and PM10. It can then be used as the metric when comparing air quality in other cities around the world. If data is unavailable for all 6 pollutants, a figure can still be calculated by using what figures there are. The only pollutant measured in Tulancingo was PM2.5 with a reading of 13.1 µg/m³.

This level of PM2.5 is just over two and a half times the recommended safe level of 10 µg/m³ as suggested by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as being an acceptable level. Although no amount of air pollution is considered to be safe.

When air pollution is from this “Moderate” bracket the given advice would be to remain indoors as much as possible, closing doors and windows to prevent more polluted air from getting inside. Those who are more sensitive to poor quality air should avoid venturing outside until the quality improves. If this is unavoidable, then a good quality face mask should be worn at all times. All types of outdoor exercise should be avoided until the situation gets better. There is a downloadable app from AirVisual.com which is suitable for all operating systems and gives the latest information regarding air quality in real-time.

Does the level of air pollution change much throughout the year in Tulancingo?

Looking back at the 2020 figures, published by IQAir.com, it can be seen that Tulancingo achieved the WHO target figure of being less than 10 µg/m³ for the months of August, September and November. The cleanest month was August when the figure was 7.6 µg/m³. The months of June and October provided “Good” quality air with respective readings of 11.5 and 10.5 µg/m³. For the remaining seven months of the year, the air quality readings were between 12.1 and 35.4 µg/m³ which is classified as “Moderate”. The poorest air quality was seen in April when the recorded figure was 18.8 µg/m³.

There were no records kept regarding air pollution before 2020 when a figure of 12.4 µg/m³ was noted. This low figure was to be expected because it would have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic as many vehicles were no longer in daily use because offices were closed and staff were encouraged to work from home, in an attempt to halt the spread of the virus. Many factories and non-essential production units were also required to close which removed their emissions from the atmosphere, albeit on a temporary basis. Worldwide, cities reported a much better quality of air due to the general lack of traffic pollution in city centres due to the pandemic.

Is there a main source of air pollution in Tulancingo?

Climate change is a phenomenon whose effects have already had repercussions on the municipality of Tulancingo, from severe flooding to the decrease in migratory birds or the delay in flowering times; likewise, in this municipality there are various environmental problems that contribute to the emission of greenhouse gases; however, in recent years various mitigation and adaptation actions have been carried out in the face of climate change. However, its inhabitants face great challenges to meet.

Vehicular traffic and agricultural and textile activities are the main sources of pollution in the region. The Tulancingo Valley is one of the regions that contributes the most ammonia (NH) and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions to the entity, according to the Management Program to Improve Air Quality in the State of Hidalgo (Proaire).

The city of Tulancingo has a purely commercial vocation, however some industries are established such as: brick, concrete, asphalt, textile and dairy production factories. Although these fixed sources have emissions into the atmosphere, their operation and functioning are controlled by the Secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources of the State of Hidalgo.

What can be done to improve air quality in Tulancingo?

Various actions are carried out worldwide to mitigate climate change, one of them is reforestation since forests are "sinks" of greenhouse gases, another action is the promotion of alternative mobility to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels; At the national and state levels, programs are developed, in the case of the state of Hidalgo, it has the "Climate Change Action Program", likewise there are the so-called "ProAire", programs for the improvement of air quality.

It is important to consider the number of motor vehicles that travel daily in the municipality, an excess of public transport is observed, where up to three different lines converge towards the same destination, causing road congestion.

What are the detrimental effects of breathing polluted air?

Scientists have long known that breathing air polluted by car exhaust could trigger asthma attacks. Asthma is the most prevalent chronic respiratory disease worldwide, affecting about 358 million people.

Air pollution as well as affecting people, animals, plants and property, causes other problems arising related to changes in its composition, such as: climate change, acid rain and the destruction of the ozone layer phenomena that globally affect the planet and that it is necessary to stop urgently by taking the necessary measures.

According to their results, ozone may generate between 9 and 23 million annual hospital visits for asthma worldwide, 8 to 20 per cent of all asthma emergency room visits. This pollutant is created when gases emitted by cars, power plants, and other types of emissions interact with sunlight. On the other hand, 5 to 10 million visits to hospitals for asthma per year were related to small airborne particles that can lodge in the airways and lungs.