Air quality in Bac Ninh

Does Bac Ninh have a good level of air quality?

Bac Ninh is a city located in the northern region of Vietnam, and is the capital city of the province with the same name. In the latter part of 2020, Bac Ninh saw some very elevated levels of pollution, with readings far exceeding safe levels of PM2.5 in the air coming in consistently during the month of December.

In a similar nature to Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam which also finds itself in the northern region, both see highly elevated levels of pollution towards the end of the year, so it is not surprising to see Bac Ninh come in with higher readings of PM2.5 due to its close proximity to the capital.

Hanoi itself came in with an average reading of 66.3 μg/m³ in November, and then a yearly high of 72.7 μg/m³ in December, numbers that put these months into the ‘unhealthy’ ratings bracket, which requires a PM2.5 reading of anywhere between 55.5 to 150.4 μg/m³ to be classed as such. As the name implies, this level of air quality is extremely detrimental to human health, and can have disastrous consequences to those exposed over long periods of time, particularly for those who are in sensitive groups such as the young, elderly or ill.

In similar fashion, Bac Ninh is showing highs of 86.3 μg/m³ in late December, with lows of 49.2 μg/m³ coming in as well, giving it somewhat of a similar average to that of Hanoi. As such, the two cities can be said to have similar pollution levels with mild variations in causes.

What are the main causes of pollution in Bac Ninh?

Due to being close to the capital city, Bac Ninh would have some pollution being generated from commuters going in and out of the city on a daily basis. This is a common occurrence with many cities round the world, with a close location to the capital, or a large economic city, people tend towards finding work and employment in these larger cities, whilst choosing to remain in the outer suburbs or cities, often due to living costs and other similar reasons.

So vehicular emissions would be a large contributor to pollution levels in Bac Ninh, with thousands of cars and motorbikes moving through the city daily, as well as the worse offenders known as heavy duty vehicles, the large and often old and outdated buses and trucks that run on diesel fuel, putting out huge amounts of black smoke and fumes.

Other causes endemic to the region and city are industrial pollutants, particularly caused by the recycling of metals such as aluminum, something which the province and city are well known for. This is a trade that has been going on for many years but has not been met with any industrial standardization in terms of procedure, and as such the chemicals involved in the recycling process can lead to serious contamination of the air and increased rates of respiratory illnesses.

Other causes of pollution are the incorrect disposal of refuse, usually garbage burnt in large piles that can lead to all manner of toxic materials such as plastics, rubber and metals undergoing combustion.

What are the main types of pollutants found in the air in Bac Ninh?

With vehicular emissions often comes a fairly standardized list of pollutants, some with more prominence than others. Two main ones in question would be nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and sulfur dioxide (SO­₂), with nitrogen dioxide having more presence in the atmosphere due to its high emission volume directly from vehicle exhaust.

Sulfur dioxide is also found with levels almost double of what should be normal within a city, with the main culprit being the aluminum recycling.

Oftentimes, with a lack of industry standardization and protection, many metals being recycled may not be suitable for this process, often covered in lacquers, varnishes or other synthetic material that will be evaporated once the metal enters into its molten form. This, alongside the burning of garbage that contains plastic and rubber, can release pollutants such as black carbon, volatile organic compounds such as benzene and formaldehyde, dioxins, furans, polychlorinated biphenyls as well as highly toxic metals such as mercury, lead and cadmium.

Other pollutants found in the air would include carbon monoxide (CO) and ozone (O_3­), all of which have highly negative consequences on human health and the environment.

What can Bac Ninh do to improve its pollution levels?

There are many steps that could be implemented to reduce PM2.5 readings in Bac Ninh. Incentives such as putting more resources into public transport infrastructure can assist with the reduction of personal vehicle usage, along with the eventual removal of diesel fuels as well as older vehicles with higher emission producing engines.

Others would include better waste management, which includes not only governing assistance but education to people about the deadly effects of burning rubbish, particularly ones containing synthetic and man-made materials.

Lastly, a standardization could be introduced to the metal recycling industry so prevalent in the region, which would see proper institutions set up that could help reduce the amount of pollution given off by aluminum recycling and lending assistance to people involved in this trade to better conduct their practices.

What are some health issues that may come from breathing pollution in Bac Ninh?

With PM2.5 levels reaching such undesirable numbers such as 86.3 μg/m³ in late December, there would be a large amount of health effects associated with breathing such contaminated air, although it must be stated that breathing any air that has higher readings than the WHO’s target goal of 0 to 10 μg/m³ may come with negative consequences, so naturally the higher the number is, the more likely these health issues will occur.

They include extreme respiratory distress, with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease seeing itself on the rise, a condition that has within it any form of reduced lung function, as well as other illnesses such as aggravated asthma attacks, pneumonia, emphysema and bronchitis.

Higher rates of lung cancer can occur, with plastic and metal fumes wreaking havoc on many parts of the body, including the nervous system, organs such as the heart, liver and kidneys, reproductive health and circulatory system all being affected. As such, when presented with such elevated numbers of PM2.5 and visible smoke, haze and smog, preventative measures such as the wearing of fine particle filtering masks as well as the avoidance of outdoor activities become ever more pertinent in the preservation of one’s health.