Tashkent ranked 1st in the world ranking for air pollution levels
On October 28, Tashkent ranked first in the rating of the world's major cities for air pollution. According to IQAir data, as of 17:57 local time, the air quality index in the capital stood at 185 — a level considered unhealthy for health.
Tashkent ranked 1st in the world ranking for air pollution levels
On October 28, the capital of Uzbekistan took first place among the world's major cities for air pollution levels.
According to data from the international monitoring platform IQAir as of 5:57 PM local time, the Air Quality Index (AQI US) in Tashkent reached 185. This falls into the "Unhealthy" category.
Jakarta, Indonesia, ranked second in the rating (170), while Bishkek took third place (165). The following positions were occupied by Dubai (156), Milan (154), Lahore (154), Mumbai (153), Delhi (152), Almaty (148), and Kolkata (144).
An indicator in the range of 151–200 on the AQI scale means that anyone may begin to experience health effects, while members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects. This group includes children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with heart and respiratory diseases.
On such days, experts recommend avoiding prolonged outdoor exposure and postponing active outdoor physical exercise. It is better to ventilate rooms during hours when the air is relatively clean, and an N95/FFP2 respirator should be used outdoors: an ordinary medical mask provides virtually no protection against fine particles.
The IQAir ranking is updated in real-time, so the city's position on the list may change throughout the day. Currently, the gap between Tashkent and the cities following it is not that large. Up-to-date information can be found on the iqair.com website and via the AirVisual app.
Earlier, it was reported that air pollution in Tashkent during the cold season is affected by a decrease in wind speed, temperature inversion, and anticyclonic processes. As Doctor of Geographical Sciences Bakhtiyor Kholmatjonov explained, under these conditions, pollutants accumulate in the layer close to the earth's surface.
To identify sources of air pollution, the Specialized Atmospheric Laboratory Center is collecting samples using special filters across all districts of Tashkent and analyzing them. In the future, there are plans to implement this practice across the republic.
According to the National Center for Climate Change, only 3.9 mm of precipitation was recorded in Tashkent until October 26. The monthly norm is 23.7 mm. Low precipitation makes it difficult to wash dust particles out of the air. Over the last decade, adverse meteorological conditions associated with a lack of strong winds and precipitation during the cold season have increased by 57 percent.