Air quality in Bao Loc

What is the air quality index of Bao Loc?

Bảo Lộc is a city in Lâm Đồng Province which is situated in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam. In 2018 the estimated population was 171,000 people. It is a large producer of tea, for which it is famous.

In early 2021, Bao Loc was experiencing “Moderate” quality air with a US AQI reading of 89. This is according to recommendations by the World Health Organisation (WHO). A concentration level of PM2.5 was recorded as 30.2 µg/m³.

What is the main source of Bao Loc’s polluted air?

One of the main sources of air pollution here comes from smoke from fires which are used to dry the most recent coffee crop.

In areas where rice is grown, the roadsides become dangerous places at the end of each harvest because the resulting stubble and other unwanted organic matter are burned. Very often plastic bottles and other garbage are thrown into these fires to be burnt alongside the rice straw.

Suspended within the smoke are, amongst others, the PM2.5 and PM10 particulate matter which are particularly dangerous. Particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) is considered to be the pollutant with the most adverse impacts on human health. It is caused by the burning of fossil fuels from by vehicles, industries and natural sources such as dust, its width is a fraction of that of a human hair, meaning it can be easily inhaled into the lungs and cause a number of diseases, including lung cancer.

According to the latest monitoring results from Lam Dong Province, the air quality at Bao Loc bauxite mine and Di Linh bentonite mine, both in Lam Dong province, are heavily polluted by sulphur dioxide gas (SO₂).

Specifically, at Bao Loc bauxite mine, sulphur dioxide gas exceeds the permitted limit of Vietnamese standards by 1.83 times, while at the Di Linh bentonite mine the limits were exceeded by 1.94 times.

As for the remaining parameters such as dust, nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide, all concentrations are within the permissible limits according to Vietnamese standards but always higher than those in previous years. Through monitoring results, experts all assessed that the quality of the air environment at the above mining locations tends to be more polluted than in previous years.

Can anything be done to improve the air quality in Bao Loc?

Presently, air pollution is receiving great attention from the media and also from the local community. The deterioration of air quality has and is having direct impacts on human health. Therefore, being provided with information on air quality is a legitimate request of the people. According to regulations on information disclosure to the community, the local authorities have published information on environmental quality, including information on air environmental quality on electronic social media.

Currently, an app for mobile devices is in the development stage which will publish information online about air quality nationwide to the community. With the data source taken from the monitoring results of the continuous automatic air environment monitoring stations, the app will be the official information channel of the local environmental agency.

With an intuitive and easy-to-use interface, the app will have main functions including; displaying AQI indicator by the current hour and date; provide a chart of AQI value evolution showing previous hours and days; make health recommendations corresponding to the AQI values; selection of regularly interested monitoring stations according to the geographical area; air quality rating according to monitoring stations. With all this up-to-date information, the user can easily see for themselves what the state of the air is and whether or not it is getting better or worse.

Is air pollution in Bao Loc getting better or worse?

On the morning of 11^th January, on the roads from the suburbs to the central area of Bao Loc city, there was stagnant garbage piled up on the street, producing bad smells from its decomposing contents.

In particular, on Highway 20, which stretches for more than 10 kilometres from Dai Lao commune to Loc Nga commune, dozens of rubbish piles covered the footpaths, polluting the entire street with a noxious smell. In some places, people set fire to these rubbish piles, making pollution more serious due to the smell and smoke.

Is an air purifier going to help with Bao Loc’s poor quality air?

We still often worry about smoke and dust pollution in outdoor air, about poor air quality, which can be harmful to health. But in fact, according to specialists, indoor air pollution is just as harmful to health as outdoor air.Poor indoor air quality is linked to lung diseases such as asthma and allergies, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer and it also affects other parts of the body. In some cases, this condition can cause serious health problems and developmental disorders, especially in young children whose organs are not yet fully formed.

Taking into account all the time we spend indoors, whether at work, at school, and in shopping centres and dining out in restaurants, we live about 90 per cent of our time indoors, so the atmosphere inside is very important to our health. Indoor air pollution can come from a variety of sources such as air pollution from outside entering the house through doors and windows, carpets, bedding, pets, cleaning materials, paint, and treated wooden furniture.

Dust enters the house when opening windows, doors, transporting furniture from outside to the house or when turning on a ventilation fan which sucks air in from outside. In addition to large dust particles that can be seen with the naked eye, the frequent opening of windows and doors allow fine dust from outside to enter your home without your knowledge. You often do not realise the existence of fine dust in your house until cleaning it.

Indoor air pollution is difficult to see with the naked eye, but just as dangerous as environmental pollution, so using an air purifier will help you proactively control indoor air quality. However, not all air purifiers on the market today are effective. In addition to choosing the right filter capacity for the room size, finding out the quality of the filters is the most important thing. Besides, reputable brand and good warranty service are also important factors, helping you to attain peace of mind.