Doha, Qatar: The State of Qatar has over the years made huge strides in protecting the environment and improving air quality by focusing on sustainability in its developmental plans and prioritising research to address the challenges, said a Qatar University Professor.
The government’s efforts to preserve the environment have led to improved quality of life for all, said Dr. Hazim Qiblawey, from the Department of Chemical Engineering at QU.
Talking about his work on air quality, Prof. Qiblawey said, “We are now working mainly on projects related to dust pollution and particulate matter. The region has a lot of dust storms, and there are also possibly some dust activities coming from the excavation and construction during the construction phase. It means that there should be some mitigation measures to reduce the effect of dust resulting either naturally from windstorms or human activities related to construction.
“These solutions can be both short-term and long-term. In the long term, for example, we need to have green infrastructure including more trees and parks. Qatar is doing well on this. There are many initiatives, and a lot of progress has been made.
He said Qatar has significantly increased green spaces and parks over the years. He said trees work as filters by capturing particulate matter and also contribute to reducing the temperature in the surroundings. This also helps reduce the intensity of windstorms.
To a question about what specific air quality challenges Qatar and the region are facing, Dr. Qiblawey said, “We should keep in mind that air pollution is not local, it's regional.” He said measures like afforestation and plantation would not eliminate climate change but would reduce its effects.
“We have air quality monitoring stations at Qatar University, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, and at other research institutions. Now we have a better picture of dust and particulate matter. We can also know its source and find out whether it’s natural or man-made.”
Dr. Qiblawey lauded the ministry’s initiative of installing air quality monitoring stations, which are providing more accurate data for policymaking and research.
Discussing the importance of research on the environment in Qatar, Dr. Qiblawey said research plays a crucial role in finding solutions to problems specific to a country and region. Research is important for policymaking and decision-making, and a lot of research is going on in Qatari higher education institutions, he said.
He said research enables researchers to identify whether particulate matter in samples they collect from various locations is resulting from natural sources, road traffic or industrial activities. There can be many different sources of particulate matter even within general industrial activities. Research helps find specific solutions to specific sources and problems, he explained.
He said the government, on its part, has implemented a number of successful initiatives to improve air quality and introduced regulations. There is transparency about the data and air quality indicators, he added.
Prof. Qiblawey said there can be at times increase in some air quality parameters as a natural consequence of increased urbanisation and road traffic, but overall, the quality has improved thanks to sustainable and green infrastructural development and other steps. “There is transparency, there are regulations in place, and with data from air quality monitoring stations, as a decision maker I would know what I need to do.”
He said Qatar had achieved milestones in using treated wastewater for irrigating the plants and green spaces, thereby conserving the natural resources.
Dr. Qiblawey said another thing which would help reduce air pollutants is minimising the duration cars stand idle and switched on, for example at traffic signals. “Because the longer a car is switched on and is standing, the more pollutants it will release … Because every car’s engine, is like a small plant. This means we have to design road infrastructure accordingly,” he said, adding that Qatar has built huge infrastructure keeping sustainability in mind. “All this will lead to a better life for the people.”
Talking about the role of the private sector in preserving air quality in Qatar, the Qatar University professor said industrial cities in Qatar had been working on controlling air pollution and maintaining air quality for a long time. “All industrial cities have for long had their own air quality monitoring stations. We control emissions at each plant and then collectively. This collaboration is very important. Industrial cities would have thus lower negative impact on the environment.”
He said environmental and air quality impact consideration of any plant should be considered even at the design stage for any plant or installations in the country. “Petrochemicals, fertilizers, fuel additives industry, steel and cement, all these major industries are complying with the Qatari standards, and every new plant should provide an environmental impact assessment (EIA) study before starting to build any plant in Qatar. Based on the EIA results, permits will be issued”, he said.
“The industry and the private sector have the ability to control the pollutants much better than traffic. We have hundreds of thousands of cars. I believe the private sector and the industrial sector, to a large extent, are doing well. But the traffic, because of the high number of cars and probably because of congestion in the city at certain times, especially at times when there is a lot of sunlight,” he said, terming the combination of traffic congestion and sunlight a bad combination for air quality. “That’s why infrastructure such as Sabah Al Ahmad Corridor not only facilitates road users but also has a great positive impact on air quality. Projects like these can accommodate more cars with a much lower impact on the environment. For traffic, an annual checkup for cars is very important.” The authorities in Qatar are working in all these areas to further improve the air quality, he added.
Dr. Qiblawey said as traffic congestion could be a major source of air pollution, measures to reduce congestion on roads, for example by rearranging the opening of schools and offices with a time gap in between, could help in this regard. “Because management is key before we go for mitigation.”
He said Qatar’s drive to increase green spaces and several trees is also contributing to improving air quality, as trees act as natural filters, reduce the temperatures, and absorb CO2 emissions.
Dr. Qiblawey said public transportation is also key and commended Qatar’s strides in introducing an efficient and sustainable transportation network of electric buses and Doha Metro. “People can argue that this electricity [for public transportation] is coming from a power plant. Controlling air pollution from power plants is easier than that from cars because each car is practically a small plant.”
On data from air quality monitoring stations, he said, “The data these stations provide is raw data and since we now have advanced technologies, we can take the data every second. It means that we have millions, maybe billions of data points. Now here the analysis of data becomes much more important.
“Some data can be collected directly like measuring temperature, but to analyse dust, you need to take the sample to the lab. That’s why we need research, chemical analysis and an understanding of the source of dust. So, analysis of data is important, and universities and research institutions can play a major role in this.”
He said the Department of Chemical Engineering at Qatar University is undertaking research on a host of aspects of air quality, including membrane materials and development of absorbent and absorbent materials, and membrane synthesis. Some of the outcomes of this research can be applied in the industry. The department is also working on improving catalytic converters for cars, as well as batteries used in electric vehicles. Research on water purification is also being conducted to increase the use of treated wastewater in irrigation. The researchers are also using local resources like turning palm waste into biochar.
He said Qatar has made huge progress in controlling CO2 emissions and improving air quality through legislation, implementation of regulations and building green, sustainable city infrastructure and public transportation. “All this is contributing to better air quality and improvement in indicators. We are going in the right direction.” With all these measures in place, the air quality can be controlled even as the economic and industrial activity expands, he added.
Dr. Qiblawey said regional countries especially in the Gulf Cooperation Council can collaborate in their air quality improvement and other environmental initiatives since they face similar climate challenges.
