MPR Annual Session Held, Jakarta Air Ranked 5 Worst in the World

Illustration of air pollution in Jakarta (ANTARA)

JAKARTA - The MPR's annual session in commemoration of the 81st anniversary of the Republic of Indonesia was held at the parliament building, Senayan, Jakarta, Friday, August 14. However, outside the room, the air quality of Jakarta this morning was in the top five cities with the worst and unhealthy air in the world.

Based on data from the air quality monitoring site IQAir at 08.10 WIB, the air quality index or air quality index (AQI) of Jakarta is in the fourth worst position in the world with a figure of 170 or an unhealthy category.

Quoted from Antara, Jakarta's air pollutants are dominated by PM 2.5 with a concentration of 80.3 micrograms per cubic meter. This condition can be detrimental to human health or sensitive animal groups and has the potential to cause damage to plants and aesthetic values.

The category has no effect on human or animal health, but can affect sensitive plants and aesthetic values are in the PM2.5 range of 51-100.

The good category is in the PM 2.5 range of 0-50. Air quality levels in this category do not have an effect on human or animal health and do not affect plants, buildings, or aesthetic values.

The very unhealthy category is in the PM 2.5 range of 200-299. Air quality in this category can be detrimental to the health of a number of exposed population segments.

The last category, namely dangerous, is in the range of 300-500. Air quality in this category can generally have a serious impact on the health of the population.

The city with the worst air quality in the first order is Kampala, Uganda, with a figure of 186. The second position is occupied by Kuching, Malaysia, with a figure of 174, followed by Lahore, Pakistan, with a figure of 171, while Doha, Qatar, is in fifth place with a figure of 164.

The public is still recommended to wear masks when going outdoors, close windows to avoid dirty outdoor air, and turn on air filters.

The Jakarta Provincial Government previously prepared three main strategies that are being carried out to improve air quality.

The first strategy is to expand the reach of Transjabodetabek bus services to reduce the use of private vehicles, such as the Blok M-Alam Sutera route, Blok M-PIK 2, to the plan to open a new route from Blok M to Soekarno-Hatta Airport.

Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung invites the public to use public transportation services provided by the Jakarta Provincial Government. The provincial government has also issued rules regarding the implementation of free public transportation services for 15 groups of people.

The waste management sector is also a concern of the provincial government by accelerating the construction of intermediate treatment facilities (ITF) in Sunter, Rorotan, Bantargebang, and West Jakarta. The project is targeted to start running in the middle of this year.