(Photo : BAY ISMOYO/AFP via Getty Images)
TOPSHOT - A man makes his way on a raft on a river during heavy smog conditions in Jakarta on August 16, 2023. Indonesian capital Jakarta has been experiencing days of heavy air pollution, according to air quality monitor IQAir, as authorities fail to grapple with a spike in toxic smog.
The toxic smog from nearby coal-fired plants and trash industries has increased respiratory illnesses and deaths as the ashes and the stench of smoke continuously hang in the air in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Edy Suryana, a resident near a power plant in northern Java, 60 miles away from Jakarta, has spent more than three decades living in a village that stayed grey for months. Other residents have been suffering from coughing, itching skin, and other health problems.
Toxic Smog in Jakarta Increases Respiratory Illnesses, Deaths
The experts reported that air pollution was causing a rise in respiratory illnesses and deaths in northern Java, which came from coal-fired plants, vehicle and motorcycle exhaust, trash burning, and industries. Many residents in the city have been calling on the government to take measures.
The key focus of the United Nations climate conference, or COP28, next week in Dubai would be the emissions from coal-fired power plants that contribute to greenhouse gases that rise into the atmosphere and help heat the planet.
Countries like Indonesia continue to struggle to balance the rising demand for power industrialization with the need to cut carbon emissions and protect public health. Suryana said that she watched her sister die due to lung problems in 2010, and in 2019, the toxic air worsened his daughter's tuberculosis.
According to research conducted by Vital Strategies, a global health public health nongovernmental organization headquartered in New York, air pollution has contributed to more than 10,000 deaths and 5,000 hospitalizations in Jakarta in 2019.
IQAir, a Swiss air technology company, reported that Jakarta was one of the most polluted cities in the world as blue skies were a rare sight, and the air often smelled like petrol or heavy smoke in the city.
Regular residents mostly complain about itchy skin, but when pollution levels climb past levels considered safe by the World Health Organization and the Indonesian government, the residents experience sore throats.
Ginanjar Syuhada, a health analyst at Vital Strategies, said that pollution levels could remain high, making it unsafe for people to do outdoor activities that could result in short and long-term damage to their health.
A spokesperson from Indonesia's Ministry of Health reported that acute respiratory infections and pneumonia cases have increased, and Jakarta's air pollution has exceeded WHO safe limits.
Jakarta Tries to Resolve Air Pollution Issue
Siti Nurbaya, Indonesia's Environmental and Forestry Minster, said emissions from burning coal have contributed to up to a third of Indonesia's air pollution.
Jakarta vowed to cut emissions in the coming decades. However, it still provides most of Indonesia's energy needs as millions of vehicles and motorcycles spew emissions as workers commute daily.
The Indonesian government advised the residents to use public transportation and attracted residents to shift from using gas or diesel-fueled vehicles to electric vehicles by giving out financial incentives.
In 2022, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi, at a national seminar in September, said that 26,100 electric vehicles and 79,700 electric motorbikes were operating in Indonesia. The government aims to have over 530,000 electric cars in Indonesia by 2030.
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