Hanoi mobilizes resources to improve the city’s air quality

The workshop also provides a forum for sharing information, practical experiences, connecting effective solutions and innovative practices to improve air quality. These collaborations and connections will contribute to improving air quality and health of people in Hanoi and other cities.

According to a report by the World Health Organization (WHO), aspirational diseases that are often triggered due to polluted ambient air cause seven million deaths each year globally. 92% of the world's population is breathing unhealthy air. Vietnam is among the countries that have the worst air quality in the world, particularly dusty pollution.  

According to statistics, the population in 2018 has reached about 8 million people, of which urban population accounts for over 40%. There are 17 industrial zones, 1.350 craft villages, six million registered motorbikes, 600.000 automobiles, and a lot of construction sites due to rapid urbanization. In addition, the city consumes an estimated 40 million kilowatt hours of electricity and millions of liters of gasoline every day. These are major sources of Green House Gas emissions and air pollution in Hanoi.

In such context, the People's Committee of Hanoi has pioneered in conducting several actions to improve air quality management such as the “One Million Trees Program”, controlling pollution sources, setting up air monitoring stations and posting information on official websites to assess air quality and give warnings to people, etc.

Improving air quality in particular and environmental protection in general always require strong and long-term cooperation between sectors and authorities at all levels, research institutions, civil society organizations and the community.

During the workshop,representatives of DONRE and Development Partners have shared ideas about air management issues in Hanoi to gradually improve the ambient air quality for Hanoi.

Stakeholders have presented and introduced environmental protection ideas such as alternatives for beehive cookstoves, collecting rice straw to protect the environment, creating a material source to produce mushroom,air quality improvement initiatives of enterprises, such as air quality measurement equipment, air filtration technology solutions, improved stoves using alternative fuel pellets to replace honeycomb stoves, limiting rice straw burning, recycling wastes, and introducing products with natural origin towards sustainable consumption.

Delegates also proposed appropriate solutions to support enhancing a draft Action Plan on Clean Air for the city of Hanoi.

The workshop was attended by nearly 200 delegates from the Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment (ISPONRE) under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE), the PPC of Hanoi, the Central Propaganda and Training Commission of City’s Party Committee, Departments, agencies of Hanoi, socio-political organizations, People's Committees of districts and towns.

Besides, USAID, the German Development Cooperation (GIZ), the World Bank, Embassies, national and international social organizations, universities and research institutes took part in the workshop.