Air Quality in (South) Bali....looking for any source material/measurements

[andrewbaker77]

If anyone can steer me toward any online information about South Bali (Kuta, Leg, Sem, Canggu, Perenenan etc) air quality measurements, I would greatly appreciate it.

Tons to love about living here, but with a two year old boy, seriously debating the health issue of air quality, as I just read a study that measured in Denpasar and found areas over 300pm10, which is basically toxic, and included a substantial amount of lead.

(And yes, for all those who want to tell me third world has perils etc, I can handle the snakes and road madness and hantus etc, but air is unavoidable.)

Big thanks. -AB in Perenenan

[andrewbaker77]

Denpasar, has shown a steady increase, making it a less healthy place to live.............Furthermore, the level of carbon monoxide in 2007 was a shocking 19 times higher than in 2006. The colorless, odorless but very poisonous gas was mostly released by motorized vehicle exhaust..........while the level of particulate matter (PM10) was 1.3 times higher -- from 135 mg/m3 to 182 mg/m3........Ubung, which has the island's largest bus terminal and a large number of industrial plants, had a PM10 level of 386.900 mg/m3, a lead level of 0,984 mg/m3 and a carbon monoxide level of 23,884.580 mg/m3.

(To give perspective: Los Angeles San Fernando Valley, notorious for bad air, has a seasonal average PM10 level of 25. 386mg is, in my understanding, totally off the charts, and I am guessing, this concentration does diminish but considering the impossibly high number, the question is, when you get to Kuta/Sem/Canggu, etc, where there is still an intense concentration of motor vehicles which here are the cause of a majority of the air pollutants, what is the PM10? )


From: Air pollution suffocates Denpasar city | The Jakarta Post

And, this was 2007. Every year Bali vehicle ownership rises a massive 17%. Which means, since this study 5 years ago, there are almost twice as many vehicles on the road.

-AB

[CanonMan]

Frightening indeed.

[sakumabali]

For me it's always difficult, take the scooter and I arrive in less than half the time but it's more dangerous & you get stoned for free from all this trucks & old kijangs; take the car and you have to deal with all these lunatic drivers who don't seem to know where is right or left or that there are TWO LANES on the bypass actually...

Both solutions are not perfect, the worst solution I sold recently: a big harley combines the disadvantages from both sides, you will stuck in traffic almost as with a car / get full load of carbon monoxide / it's HOT and you stuck at simpang siur cause some guys in cars smaller than your harley doesn't want to move to the left (right) even there's PLENTY of space and give you a chance to pass....I think often the WE-CULTURE in Bali turns to a I-CULTURE as soon they sit on wheels....

[pollyanna]

I would have thought that the pollution levels in Denpasar are many times higher than in areas such as Perenenan and that you wouldn't need to be concerned but I can understand your worry and it would be interesting to know the facts about air pollution in Bali. I think the government has a vested interest in not publicly exposing facts that might reduce the tourist numbers so it might be difficult to get accurate information.

[remoteplanet]

Interesting thread. As a side note, I was wondering about water quality, and came across a number of very interested and insightful threads (I'm too new to this forum to post links yet, but I've put the titles of them below). I'm curious about soil quality as well. All of these issues are interconnected after all.

Rain Water and Tanks (2010)

Pipe Water or Well? (2007)

Disappointed in pollution (2006)

Six beaches in Bali polluted (2010)

[andrewbaker77]

Scooter riders:

Anyone getting sinus infections (the symptoms of a sinus infection include persistent coughing, a constant running nose, and worst of all, pressure behind the eyes, nose, cheeks, and side of the head.) for the first time???

My girlfriend did, and it's also her first time riding day after day for two months a scooter in heavy Canggu and Seminyak and Kuta traffic. Feels very related. - AB

[andrewbaker77]

Couple more perspectives to consider if any one cares.

Univ California Los Angeles did massive amounts of research on freeway pollution and distances it travels, and recorded that with a tail wind, high levels of pollution will go 3 kilometers/1.5 miles, entering homes at high levels.

Consider, the Los Angeles freeway PM10 level is on average 50-60, and Ubung is recording reads off the charts at 350.

As well, regular roads here, due to tremendously inefficient trucks as well as pollution creating stops and starts vs low pollution of high speed smooth driving, must have huge PM10 levels.

-AB

[sakumabali]

For many years the indonesian government didn't allow german Diesel engines to be sold here cause they're "not clean enough", it's a joke!
Every time I see these stinking half broken solar trucks I'm wondering what are they thinking?

[andrewbaker77]

Denpasar
 Monitoring has been discontinued since 2003
 The monitoring equipment has been returned to the Ministry of Environment
(MoE) for a variety of reasons including city priorities and budget

From:

http://www.citiesforcleanair.org/doc...ile_5Oct09.pdf


Bali, (Indo Gov) is poisoning its people. The truth about Bali air quality air pollution is purposefully kept unknown.

Badung is posting world record numbers (386 pm10) that are worse than the world's most polluted cities, Denpasar is recording an average (186 pm10) that's the equivalent of "stay indoors do not go out too dangerous" alert and Bali Gov knows this is crushing to tourist dollars, so all monitoring stations are removed.

There is no other explanation for Ministry of Enviro to remove air monitoring stations in a place (South Bali) where the auto/scooter ownership rate, accountable for 75% of all particulate matter, is doubling every 5 years.

Oh, a last note. If you think inside a car is safer than a scooter, it's not. Same amount of pm10 particulates enter your airways.

Every other pollution, danger etc, you can avoid (bad ocean, bad water, etc) but not this.

Very very sad to see an island purposefully stop monitoring the most important environmental measurement of its people, especially when the health impact on small kids/babies is huge.

Think we're adiosing. -AB