As world vies to “Beat Air Pollution”..Antarctica hunts for air purifier

06 / 06 / 2019

Sustainable Development

By Marwa Nassar -

The World Environment Day on June 5 is a great opportunity for world countries to launch many initiatives to go green and reduce pollution in order to curb climate change. This year’s theme is “Beat Air Pollution” as air pollution claims the lives of seven million people every year and damages children’s development.

The event is meant to encourage governments, industry, communities and individuals to take action to explore renewable energy and green technologies, and improve the air quality in cities and regions across the world.

World countries and heavyweight companies took great measures to reduce air pollution, but Antarctica took the lead to hunt for an air purifier.

An international team of Antarctic scientists spent a hundred days at one of the snowiest places on earth to collect old air trapped in deep ice. At Law Dome in East Antarctica, the team drilled ice cores to retrieve traces of the reactive hydroxyl molecule. Hydroxyl acts a natural ‘air purifier’ by removing pollutants, such as greenhouse gases and ozone depleting chemicals.

Scientists on the hunt for hydroxyl have found a way to measure another trace gas – itself present in minuscule but measureable concentrations – that acts as a proxy for hydroxyl. As a natural ‘air purifier’ the amount of hydroxyl in the atmosphere is critical to the removal of pollutants, including greenhouse gases and ozone depleting chemicals.

Century-old air extracted from up to 240 meters below the Antarctic ice sheet will help scientists determine how much of a natural atmospheric ‘air purifier’ is available to scrub the Earth’s atmosphere of pollutants.

The move would mark a breakthrough to confront the alarming phenomenon of climate change which poses grave threat to people’s lives.

In a message on the World Environment Day, United Nations Secretary General António Guterres has emphasized the link between worsening levels of air pollution and the climate crisis.

With the environment facing “unprecedented perils,” caused by human activity, the UN chief said that action to fight climate change is “the battle of our lives, that we must win, by taxing pollution, ending fossil fuel subsidies, and halting the construction of new coal plants.”

World Environment Day, widely celebrated in over 100 countries, is the United Nations day for encouraging international awareness and action to protect the environment. Every World Environment Day has a different host country: this year’s host is China, with the official celebration taking place in the eastern city of Hangzhou, in the presence of senior Chinese government officials and Joyce Msuya, Acting Executive Director of the UN Environment Program (UNEP).

Although the rapid development of many Chinese cities has led to poor air quality, and associated health problems for many citizens, the country has made significant strides in addressing the problem in recent years.

In the Chinese capital, Beijing, which has become almost synonymous with air pollution, the concentration of fine particulates (the tiny, deadly elements largely responsible for deaths and illnesses) in the air, has fallen by a third over the past two decades, beating the target set by the State Council, China’s main administrative body.

Beijing has made great strides in curbing vehicle emissions and pushing electric mobility, and in the process, improved the air quality for its 21 million citizens.

Beijing is one of many Chinese cities that has embraced electric. In just eight years, Shenzhen has become the first city in the world to electrify all of its 16,359 public buses, with Shanghai and Hangzhou on a similar trajectory.

“Electric buses are just a start, it’s just a baby step,” the Shenzhen-based manufacturer BYD said, which is a manufacturer of electric vehicles. “In the future we also want to electrify taxis, trucks and all other vehicles.”

China has become a leader in electric transit, owning 99 per cent of the world’s 385,000 electric buses, a figure that’s expected to swell to 600,000 by 2025. What this means is that the country is not only leading the global market in electric mobility, but making hefty gains in reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions nationally.

Air pollution goes to the heart of social justice and global inequality. According to the World Health Organization, 97 percent of cities in low- and middle-income countries with more than 100,000 inhabitants do not meet air quality guidelines. That percentage falls to 49 in high-income countries.

World Environment Day events on every continent drew attention to this issue, and united communities against a global health threat that affects individuals, indiscriminate of age, religion or nationality.

In Europe, celebrations kicked off with the launch of the report ‘Air Pollution and Human Health: The Case of the Western Balkans‘ in Sarajevo, accompanied by the presentation of the ‘Sarajevo Air’ app, that helps citizens avoid polluted areas while walking or cycling.

The Celebrations on the continent further included an eco-trail run in Geneva, the Festival de l’environnement in Brussels and the launch of a World Environment Day themed song.

In Africa, Kenya marked the World Environment Day with a fashion show featuring striking pieces from local eco-conscious designers. A bike ride through the center of the capital, Nairobi, was followed by the official celebrations, which included a ceremonial tree planting exercise, cultural performances and art exhibitions.

A number of African countries – South Africa, Rwanda, Morocco, Tanzania, Senegal, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Niger, Nigeria, Algeria – also commemorated the day with official events.

Marking the event, Tunisia underlined its commitment to sustainable development and tackling environment issues. Tunisia decided to launch on June 9 a “downtown free from cars” overture to spread awareness about the importance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Egypt celebrated the World Environment Day by launching an initiative of planting one million trees nationwide. The initiative serves several goals, including disseminating awareness about the importance of curbing climate change, serving food security and combating desertification.

In Upper Egypt governorate of Luxor, Youth Love Egypt Foundation launched in tandem with the United Nation News Center in Cairo “Clean Shores” initiative to clean the Nile banks in Luxor.

In Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, youth-led flashmobs drew attention to the issue of air pollution right before the start of the Eid-Al Fitr festivities. Celebrations in Bahrain started on the 3^rd of June with the planting of 150 Neem trees, and a mass cycling event in partnership with the Embassy of India in Bahrain.

Marking the event, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon raised the slogan of “Save the Earth and Ride a Bike.”

In New York, climate, health and building experts discussed air pollution as a global health emergency and a leading environmental threat to the city, while almost 90 third grade students at the School for Environmental Studies and Community Wellness in Brooklyn gathered to compose “Love Letters to the Air,” an arts-integrated, creative letter-writing project that promotes positive change for our planet.

Elizabeth Warren, an American politician who has launched a 2020 presidential campaign, released a comprehensive plan for investment in the clean energy economy. The proposal calls for $2 trillion in total investments over the next decade, including funding for a National Institute of Clean Energy, using the purchasing power of the federal government to mainstream emissions-free technologies, and a $100 billion “Green Marshall Plan” to help other countries purchase US-made green technologies and commit to reducing their carbon emissions.

In response, Greenpeace USA Senior Climate Campaigner Jack Shapiro said “With this plan, Elizabeth Warren is seizing the enormous opportunity that transitioning to 100 percent clean energy represents for people across the country. The renewable energy economy is a win-win for our climate and communities, and should be at the core of any plan to create jobs and spur innovation.”

“But we know that investing in renewables alone will not be enough to stave off climate crisis — our next president has to confront the fossil fuel industry, as well. To truly take the lead on climate, Warren needs to lay the groundwork for a world without fossil fuels by issuing a detailed plan to responsibly phase out all oil, gas, and coal production.”

Warren was the first candidate to commit to banning fossil fuel extraction on public lands on her first day in office, helping her earn sixth place in Greenpeace’s 2020 climate ranking released last week. Public lands extraction accounts for roughly 25 percent of US greenhouse gas emissions.

In Ecuador, regional host of World Environment Day, young people planted 1,000 native trees minutes from the crater of the Pululahua, one of the few inhabited volcanoes in the planet.

In Haiti and Mexico, UN Environment hosted film festivals on the environment. The Mexican state of Guanajuato saw further celebrations, including a nighttime bike ride.

Cycling was also on the agenda in Peru, where a massive bike ride was organized in the capital, Lima, to commemorate World Environment Day. In Brazil, 10 states organized bike rides over the course of a week, while the city of São Paolo formally launched the implementation of a national network for air quality monitors.

Other World Environment Day celebrations in Asia and the Pacific took place in Myanmar, where the President launched the country’s environmental and climate change policies, India, where the Agra government announced their clean air plan and Thailand, where events attended by the Governor of Bangkok and top officials from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment saw musical performances, activities and panel discussions on air pollution.

Meanwhile, nine governments; namely Bogotá (Colombia), Lalitpur and Kathmandu (Nepal), Honduras, Bogor City (Indonesia), the Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Montevideo (Uruguay) and Mexico, made commitments to bring air quality to safe levels by 2030, by joining the BreatheLife campaign, a joint initiative by UN Environment, the World Health Organization, the Climate and Clean Air Coalition and the World Bank.

By committing to BreatheLife, the nine governments demonstrate their dedication to collaborate on the clean air solutions that will help the world to be free of air pollution faster. The new commitments bring the number of cities, regions and countries in the BreatheLife network to 63, representing 271.4 million citizens around the world.

On the World Environment Day (WED) several famous companies announced their plans to end plastic wastes.

Costa Coffee UAE has announced a string of sustainability initiatives all to reduce wastage across its stores.

One of its initiatives was offering coffee for free in stores across the UAE for all customers who bring in their reusable cup on WED.

That’s not all, as Costa has now turned its attention towards straws. To celebrate this planet saving swap, COSTA Coffee has partnered with Dubai International Airport (DXB) and commissioned award-winning sculpture artist Mariska Nell to create an upcycled straw globe installation.

Made from 60,000 leftover straws, the ‘Last Straw’ project is a modern art piece for passengers of the world’s busiest international airport to see and remind them to take greater care of the planet.

Meanwhile, Nestle Middle East said it seeks to get all of the company’s packaging across the world to be recyclable or reusable by 2025.

Nestlé is playing an active role in developing plastics collection, sorting and recycling schemes across the region, where it’s contributing to industry coalitions that aim to create circular economies within countries, recycling and reusing in a manner that creates shared value for all involved.

Nestlé Middle East has since 2010 achieved a 42% reduction in water withdrawal per ton of product, a 34% decrease in energy consumption, and 28% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, while its production went up by 68%. The company has also achieved Zero waste for disposal at its food manufacturing sites in the region.

The announcement, made on World Environment Day which is commemorated since 1974 every June 5th, “is in line with our commitment to steward resources for future generations through caring for water, safeguarding the environment and acting on climate change, and helps us fulfill our purpose of Enhancing Quality of Life and Contributing to a Healthier Future,” said Siva Kumar, Regional Safety, Health, & Environment Manager at Nestlé Middle East.

One example of how this is done is through Nestlé Middle East manufacturing sites installing nearly 28,000 solar PV panels, thus reducing at least six million kilograms of CO2 emissions annually, which is the equivalent of eliminating the carbon emissions of nearly 1,500 passenger cars for one year, or the energy consumption of 800 homes annually.

Research and multi-sectoral partnerships are also being developed, with recent examples including the creation of the Nestlé Institute of Packaging Science to evaluate and develop new sustainable packaging material and solutions in collaboration with academia, supplier, startups, and others. This will ensure all of the company’s packaging across the world is recyclable or reusable by 2025.

Moreover, NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto is teaming up with the United Arab Emirates’ environmental management leader Bee’ah to launch a recycling program that makes it easy for coffee lovers to drop off their used capsules at convenient locations in Dubai and Sharjah.

The move, in line with Nestlé’s commitment to make 100% of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025, is reminding people that “recycling your brew starts with you,” as noted by Raef Labaky, Nescafé Business Executive Manager at Nestlé Middle East. People will receive a bag with every online purchase and can also just ask for one without making any purchases at the drop off sites located at NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto’s pop up shops in Dubai Festival City and Mirdif City Center as well as outside the Bee’ah headquarters in Sharjah.

“Coffee lovers can thus play an active role in helping the environment, as we will be delivering all deposited capsules to Bee’ah on a weekly basis for recycling with their plastic products,” added Labaky.

Fahad Shehail, CEO of Waste Management Services at Bee’ah, said “Bee’ah is a strong believer in effectively reaching all consumer segments within the public sphere to encourage behavioral change and sustainable practices, and we are confident that our partnership with NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto will assist us in achieving these key goals.”

Joining this march, Procter & Gamble announced that it plans to trial refillable packaging for its olay REgenerist Whip moisturizer for three months starting this October. The company says its goal is to reduce plastic waste. The move follows Procter & Gamble’s participation in Loop, a pilot program that offers users refillable packaging in select markets.

It’s great to see more companies trialing refill and reuse options, but these programs must be executed properly and given a chance to succeed. This requires making refillable products accessible to as many people as possible and educating customers on the importance of reuse.

Hope is glimmering as the whole world is drumming up efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which calls for protecting the planet and its natural resources, taking action vis-à-vis climate change, improving people’s health and depending on clean energy.

Hopefully, all the aforementioned initiatives would achieve their goals for a better future for the planet and the coming generations.