Air quality in Hanoi and Hung Yen is at a very bad level.

Many roads in Hung Yen city are still covered in thick fog, with poor air quality. Photo courtesy

At 7:00 a.m., the Environmental Department's monitoring station at Hanoi University of Science and Technology on Giai Phong Street recorded an AQI of 204, equivalent to a very poor level. Air quality at this station returned to a very poor level at 5:00 a.m., after decreasing to poor and poor levels since the early morning of December 8. Station 556 Nguyen Van Cu maintained an AQI of around 190 at dawn, while the Khuat Duy Tien station was above 150.

This morning, Hanoi's monitoring system displayed three stations with the same addresses and indexes as the Department of Environment's system.

Not only in Hanoi, in Thai Binh ward, Hung Yen province, air quality also reached a very bad level from early morning, by 8am the AQI index reached 246. Some localities such as Ninh Binh and Thai Nguyen recorded bad air quality.

According to the IQAir data aggregator, this morning Hanoi ranked 9th in the list of air polluted cities in the world with an index of 199, followed by Kolkata, India, with an index of 262. On this system, many inner-city areas of Hanoi are at very bad levels such as Tay Ho 227, Tran Vu 204, Hoang Quoc Viet 203.

The Department of Environment forecasts that tomorrow, air quality in Hung Yen, Ninh Binh, and Hai Phong may be at a very bad level. Hanoi, Bac Ninh, Lang Son, Quang Ninh, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, and Phu Tho will be at a bad level.

According to the air quality forecasting system of the University of Technology (Vietnam National University, Hanoi), the North is in a period of pollution lasting from December 8 to 14, with the pollution peaking around December 11 to 12 before gradually decreasing as cold air strengthens.

Faced with serious pollution, on November 27, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment requested ministries and sectors to deploy urgent response measures in Hanoi and surrounding areas. The Ministry of Industry and Trade was asked to direct thermal power, steel, chemical and fertilizer plants to strictly operate exhaust gas treatment systems, absolutely not discharge untreated waste, and reduce capacity when the pollution index exceeds 200.

The Ministry of Construction requires construction sites to cover, wash vehicles, spray mist to suppress dust, and even temporarily suspend projects that cause large amounts of dust. Localities should direct traffic and control material transport vehicles to limit congestion and increase pollution. The Ministry of Public Security should step up enforcement of uncovered material transport vehicles, vehicles that are past their expiration date and emit black smoke, and illegal garbage burning.

The Ministry of Health has instructed people to protect their health, especially sensitive groups, while the Ministry of Education and Training has asked educational institutions to limit outdoor activities when the air quality is at a bad level.

PV (synthesis)

Source: https://baohaiphong.vn/chat-luong-khong-khi-o-ha-noi-hung-yen-o-muc-rat-xau-529069.html