What is the word? Smoky. Let me start with that.
Link to the article on
Huffington Post.
If reading this article as someone who has never experienced poor air
quality, here is some simple imagery to help you understand: it feels
like you are trapped in a small room with a big camp fire and no
ventilation. Now imagine, this is for the duration of the 8-month
heating season, as you are trapped in the room in the coldest capital in
the world.
Ulaanbaatar today is ranked by the World Health Organization as one
of the most polluted cities in the world. In short, the combination of
the burning of coal by the city power plants and the residents that
reside in the ger districts surrounding the city center are the major
sources for the toxic air omnipresent during the winter months. The
Ulaanbaatar population is roughly 1.3 million today according to a 2010
National Population Center census and an estimated 60% live in the ger
district.
10% of the city's total mortality is due to the outdoor air pollution
The ger districts, are residential zones where most families reside
in Mongolian traditional felt tents or shoddy wooden buildings with for
the large part, limited access to water, sanitation, and unreliable
power. The district expanded exponentially as a transient living space
when nomadic herders first began moving into the capital city,
dramatically, after the transition of Mongolia to capitalism in the
early 90's. Since then it has morphed into uncontrollable urban sprawl
with no foreseeable solution in the short term.
In addition,the sheer number of cars which include both SUVS and old
rickety imported passenger cars with poor emission (unofficial numbers
estimate 300,000 in UB) sitting idle in traffic caused by the lack of
proper roads contributes significantly to poor air quality. Clearly,
keeping in mind that to travel 3 kilometers in downtown UB one might sit
in traffic for up to an hour, Ulaanbaatar infrastructure is obviously
not up to pace with economic growth. To give you an idea of how quickly
the scene in Ulaanbaatar has changed, reflect on these numbers:according
to the Mongolian traffic institute, there were 40,000 vehicles
registered in Ulaanbaatar in 1991. In 2010, that number rose to 120,000.
Today most estimates average as earlier mentioned, 300,000 vehicles
both unregistered and registered.
The entrance of Mongolia into the global market, coupled by
Mongolia's recent mining boom, more and more herder families come to
Ulaanbaatar seeking the opportunities of capitalism. Recent, harsh
winters conditions making nomadic life devastatingly difficult have also
contributed to a large influx of nomadic migrants. For when a herder
loses his animals, he loses his livelihood and most feel that after
losing herd, the best opportunity lies in the city center as Mongolia
itself has no manufacturing or industry beyond Ulaanbaatar. There are 19
"aimags" or provinces in Mongolia, and opportunity for employment is
minimal.
I was fortunate to arrive to the city during the summer when the air
pollution is minimal, however, this also gave me the chance to see and
smell the decline in air quality intimately. By late September, I
avoided walking when I could, and by October, I had become a proud owner
of a sophisticated air filter mask. Nowadays, I don't leave the house
without it, and even find myself wearing it when driving as well.
Thankfully, I was lucky to find a local salesperson, a graduate of
Green River Community College located in Washington, USA, who took the
initiative to contact the seller in Singapore to become the first local
distributor of the so-called "Totobobo" mask last winter. People who
wear air filter masks are a rare oddity and most local Mongolians opt
for cloth masks. However, the change in attitude is visible, there are
more businesspersons trying to capitalize on the need and with that
said, one can find advertisements for air filter masks dotted sparsely
around the city. I expect more health advocates to vouch for the
effectiveness and necessity to wear a mask and to see more people
adjusting to wearing them in the near future. The local Facebook page,
Expats in Mongolia, had an interesting post a few weeks ago where one
man was offering to deliver air filter masks for free from an American
company for fellow expats as he was already having a shipment delivered
to himself.
The trouble is air filter masks are expensive (generally around 40+
USD) not including the cost for replacement filters. An alternative are
masks similiar to those used on construction sites, which cost around
3-4 USD available in certain stores. The people most likely to be found
with the air filter masks are unsurprisingly expats and Mongolians
educated abroad. Usually when asked about my mask the reactions vary
from shock at how expensive the mask was and general doubt about its
effectiveness. Contextualized, this makes sense; the minimum monthly
wage requirement by law is 193,000 MNT or 130 USD.
Perhaps, the most frustrating and liberating aspect of living under a
cloud of smoke is that, you can escape. Ulaanbaatar is the largest city
in Mongolia, however, is a meager 1,816 sq miles. If one drives a few
miles out of the city, into isolation albeit a few gers, the air is
incredibly fresh. Those who have the means to leave the city during
weekends and holidays seem to take every opportunity.
The government has taken initiatives to address the problem. Most
notably, through a partnership with the World Bank on the "Ulaanbaatar
Clean Air Project", a 5 year project with a closing in 2017.
The main
objectives of the project are to provide access of more efficient
heating appliances that produce less particulate matter emissions and to
develop systems for continued measuring and evaluation of the air
pollution of Ulaanbaatar. The project is projected to cost a total of
21.9 million USD, and 50% will be provided as a soft loan from the World
Bank. The World Bank is not alone; many other international
organizations have enlisted in the fight for better air quality
including the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Asian Development
Bank, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the European
Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Improving the air quality in Ulaanbaatar with short term solutions is
a priority, as it means greatly reducing the daily suffering of
breathing in toxic air and its health consequences which include and
aren't limited to irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, worsening of
existing lung and heart problems like asthma, and an increased risk of
heart attack.
The medium and long term solutions will undoubtedly prove to be more
complex. How and when the Mongolian government plans to solve the urban
planning crisis of the Ulaanbaatar ger district remains to be seen. The
crisis is multifaceted and requires a comprehensive outlook on improving
education, lowering the unemployment rate, sustainable infrastructure
of roads, power, heating and sewage, and the list goes on. However, it
should be no surprise that the sooner the city can solve this problem,
this developing city will be able to avoid astronomical health costs
that shadow the toxic air being breathed in by young citizen population
of Mongolia (68% of the total population is under the age of 35).
This blog post titled "What is it like living in Ulaanbaatar?" and
might seem to have strayed off topic. However, for anyone living in this
city, like the air pollution itself, these discussions become
inescapable. Living in Ulaanbaatar is more than just air pollution, but
for now, it is all I can think about. I am lucky to be able to afford
the luxuries of air filter masks and air filters in my home; however,
knowing that the majority of Ulaanbaatar citizens cannot is hard to cope
with. The young children in these slums, who go to bed in smoky rooms,
and wake up to hazy fog is devastating. I can only hope that those
qualified and those capable of acting for change, act with courage and
urgency. This city is killing its citizens, and that is no
dramatization.
**************
UB Post, November 19th, 2013
Luxury apartment sales increases in Ulaanbaatar.
UB Post, November 19th, 2013
Mayor promotes electric cars to reduce air pollution.
UB Post, October 8th, 2013
Poison air pollutes the city.
UB Post, October 1st, 2013
UB and JICA launch second phase of air pollution control project.
UB Post, September 15th, 2013
Citizens of the city facing lung damage.
Mongolia News, June 12th, 2013
Modun Resources wins preferred coal briquettes supplier to Mongolian Govt.
UB Post, April 30th, 2013
Inspections measure car exhaust emissions.
Huffington Post, December 12th, 2012
Postcards From the Second Most Air Polluted City in the World.
TUNZA Eco Generation, November 27th, 2012
Face to air pollution of Ulaanbaatar.
Mongolia News, November 25th, 2012
Air Pollution Killing Ulaanbaatar's Residents.
Mongolia News, November 16th, 2012
Philippine company makes air-cleansing device in Ulaanbaatar.
UB Post, November 9th, 2012
Another Winter Looms and So Does the Smog.
UB Post, November 9th, 2012
National Committee for Reducing Air Pollution Convenes.
