Background: Air pollution may be defined as any atmospheric condition in which substances are present at concentrations high enough above their normal ambient levels to produce a measurable effect on man, animal, vegetation, or materials. By, "substances" we mean any natural or man-made chemical elements or compounds capable of being airborne. These substances may exist in the atmosphere as gases, liquid drops, or solid particles. The definition includes any substance, whether noxious or benign; however, in using the term "measurable effect" we will generally restrict our attention to those substances that cause undesirable effects.

The Air Pollution problem can be simply depicted as a system consisting of three basic components:


  The ultimate aim of a study of this system is to provide an answer to the question: What is the optimum way to abate air pollution? It is quite clear that the abatement of air pollution in the large polluted areas of the world will require a substantial economic investment, and perhaps changes in patterns of living and energy use as well. It is unrealistic to speak of no air pollution whatsoever; it is virtually impossible to eliminate entirely all man made emission of foreign substances into the atmosphere. It is more sensible to aim toward the reduction of pollutant emission to a point such that noticeable adverse effects associated with the presence of pollutants in the air are eliminated. Because of the great expenditure of money that will be required, social and political factors will play a major role in meeting this goal.

In recent time horizon Air pollution got priority among other environmental issues in Asia along with the other part of the world. In many towns and cities exposure to air pollution is the main environmental threat to human health. Long term exposure to high level of soot and small particles in the air also contributes to a wide range of chronic respiratory diseases and exacerbates heart diseases and other conditions. Particulate pollution, either on its own or in combination with sulphur dioxide, leads to an enormous burden of ill health, causing at least 500,000 premature deaths and 4 - 5 million new cases of chronic bronchitis each year (World Bank 1992).

Due to increasing man made activities, emission of Sulphur Dioxide and Nitrogen Oxides have been rising over the past decades. In addition rapid growth of cities together with associated expansion of industry and transport systems has made the Asian region increasingly concerned with these emissions. Projections indicate that at the current growth rate of energy consumption, by the year 2000, Sulphur Dioxide emission in Asia will surpass the combined emissions of Europe and North America. If this occurs, the impact, which has been experienced in Europe and North America over this century, will become apparent in parts of Asia over the next few decades.

On 19 and 20 March 1998 senior government officials and experts on air pollution met at the Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand, and agreed on a draft Declaration. On 22 April 1998 the Male` Declaration on Control and Prevention of Air pollution and its Likely Transboundary Effects for South Asia was discussed and signed by Ministries of the Environment at the seventh meeting of the Governing Council of South Asia Cooperative Environment Programme (SACEP) in Male¢ , Republic of Maldives.

The Male¢ declaration make provision for baseline studies and an action plan for air pollution. In view of these, a Memorandum of Understanding on working arrangements between the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) and the United Nations Environment Programme/ Environment Assessment Programme for Asia and the Pacific (UNEP/EAP.AP) for the implementation (Phase I) of the Declaration was signed on 27 May 1998.

Bangladesh, as a signatory of Male Declaration has conducted a Base line Study. The study is focused on the state of Air Pollution in Bangladesh, its measurement, and responses. Obviously, this study is a vital tool to prepare a National Action Plan to cope with sub-regional Action Plan.
 
 

 History of Air Pollution & its Abatement: For centuries, urban air pollution has posed a problem for city dwellers. The earliest manifestation of pollution may have been the smoke produced by burning poor quality coal in relatively cold climates in Northern Europe. This caused high sulfur dioxides (SO2) and particle exposure, sometimes with serious health impacts. England has an early history of smoke abatement, with Parliamentary Acts against coal burning issued as early as the 13th and 14th centuries. The Industrial Revolution introduced point sources of larger emissions from various processes. The most important of theses was the burning of coal for energy production, resulting in SO2 and combustion particles (smoke).

Coal burning in small and large sources was generally allowed to continue without required abatement well into the 20th century. Elevated stacks were the only mode of pollution abatement. Large emissions of SO2 and smoke particles overloaded the atmosphere during temperature inversions in stable high pressure situation with stagnate air leading to notorious air pollution episodes. The 1952 London episode was the worst, resulting in an estimated 4,000 deaths in five days. This prompted more stringent air pollution acts in England and in other countries, starting the modern history of air quality management.

Although the components of air pollution have changed over the years, with industrial sources now including toxic gases, coal remains an importance source of air pollution. In addition, vehicular traffic sources have expanded rapidly in the last three decades. Traffic activity in urban areas of industrialized western nations has witnessed a four to five fold increase over the last 30 years. In developing nations, this increase has been ten fold or more.
 
 

 Objectives: Phase I of the implementation aims to achieve the following objectives: Methodology: The baseline study has been followed by the guideline outlined in Implementation of the Male¢ Declaration on Control and Prevention of Air Pollution and Its likely Transboundary Effects for South Asia Phase – I.

This study is mainly based on secondary data. To fulfill the objectives of the study we approached GOs, NGOs, Research Institutes, and Experts on Air Pollution. We also conducted sectoral and sub-sectoral study on this issue.