ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Baghdad’s air quality has improved over the past week, a government spokesperson said on Friday, though the Iraqi capital continues to be one of the world's most polluted cities.
“According to the IQAir company’s data, Baghdad’s air quality has been good for over a week, outperforming many cities worldwide,” Luay al-Mukhtar, spokesperson for the Iraqi environment ministry, told Rudaw.
“Today [Friday], the Chinese capital Beijing ranked first for the worst air quality, while cities like Jakarta, Sarajevo, Milan, Berlin, Budapest, Riyadh, and Dubai all have worse air quality than Baghdad,” he added.
According to the Swiss air quality monitoring agency IQAir, Baghdad was ranked eighth globally for poor air quality on Friday.
Industry, oil refineries, hundreds of generators, and traffic congestion all contribute to Iraq’s air pollution. Earlier this month, residents of the capital complained about the heavy pollution that was 15 times higher than global standards.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani ordered a specialized committee to “study the pollution issue and the recurring sulfur odor emissions in Baghdad and neighboring provinces, to determine their causes and provide solutions.”
One measure adopted was shutting down some 30 waste incineration sites.
Mukhtar accused some people of “attempting to tarnish” Baghdad’s image by reporting on the bad air quality.
“Those who rushed to announce negative news about Baghdad’s air quality two weeks ago relied on an international company’s site but are no longer interested in monitoring Baghdad’s improved air quality for over a week,” he said.
According to IQAir, Baghdad’s air quality has improved in the past week, going from unhealthy to moderate. On Friday evening, however, the concentration of pollutants was still 10 times higher than guidelines set by the World Health Organization.
Mushtaq Ramadhan contributed to this article.
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