CHAIR REPORT

Korea Central-Asia Youth Summit

Environment Committee
Providing measures to solve air pollution in Asia

Chair: HAESUN LEE

Liaisons: JIEUN KIM, YURIM JO

Inspected by David Allan Bezuidenhout

KCYS 2017 CHAIR REPORT Environment Committee

I. Committee Introduction
The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), the leading global environmental authority inside
the United Nations, sets the global agenda regarding environment and promotes the coherent
implementation of the environmental dimensions of sustainable development. The committee also strives
for the advocacy of global environmental issues and better comprehension of environmental agendas
within nations respectively. UN Environment activities cover a wide range of issues regarding the
atmosphere, marine and terrestrial ecosystems, environmental governance and green economy. Ever
since its formation in 1972, UNEP has played a significant role in developing international environmental
conventions, promoting environmental science, paving measures for the agendas in conjunction with the
UN policy, implementing those policies with national governments, regional institutions, and
environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs). UN Environment has also been actively involved
in funding and implementing environment related development projects. Their core missions are to
provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing, and
enabling nation states and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future
generations. This years agenda in KCYS regarding air pollution in Asia has long been an ongoing debate
and a problematic issue that the Environment Committee has recently focused on and has thus resurfaced
in the international community.

II. Status Quo

General Overview
The problem of air pollution has become an impending issue world-wide in the past few decades.
The issue of air quality is directly related to the very existence and health of mankind. It is especially
harmful to children and those susceptible to respiratory illnesses, being a risk factor for both acute
and chronic respiratory diseases.

The air we breathe contains a variety of pollutants emitted into the atmosphere, also called the
ambient air, as well as into the air indoors. While the composition of air pollution may vary
according to region, season, and climate, it is generally the mixture of solid particles, liquid droplets
and gases from a variety of sources such as industry, motor vehicles, heating appliances, and tobacco
smoke. It can also be generated by natural events such as bush fires and can contain windblown
dust, pollen and mold spores.

While second-hand tobacco smoke and certain outdoor pollutants are known risk factors for
respiratory infections, indoor air pollution from solid fuels is one of the major contributors to the
global issue of disease. In poorly ventilated dwellings, the small particle level of indoor smoke can be
100 times higher than the acceptable levels of small particles. Exposure is particularly high among
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women and young children, who spend the most time near the domestic hearth.

Likewise, the exposure to air pollution may cause a wide range of health effects and diseases. These
vary from mild symptoms such as the irritation of eyes, nose and throat, to more serious conditions
such as lung (respiratory) and heart (cardiovascular) diseases, which can be seen in Central Asia,
where air pollution is severe due to industrialization, natural disasters and other environmental
factors.

Depending on the pollutant, short-term exposure has different health effects to long-term exposure.
Short-term exposure exacerbates pre-existing illnesses such as asthma, chronic bronchitis (also called

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(WHO 2016)
KCYS 2017 CHAIR REPORT Environment Committee

chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD) or heart disease. Longer-term exposure can cause
the development of respiratory and heart conditions and shorten ones life. This is the paramount
reason why immediate action should be taken, and measures put in place, in specific regions where
these types of policies have not yet been properly enacted.

Europe

Once covered in smog and pollution, Europe now enjoys a much quality of air. Nevertheless, parts of
Europe are not entirely free from pollutants; a significant proportion of Europes population live in areas,
especially cities, where exceedances of air quality standards occur: ozone, nitrogen dioxide and
particulate matter (PM) pollution pose serious health risks. Several countries have exceeded one or more
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of their 2010 emission limits of four important air pollutants.

Thus, within the European Union, the

Seventh Environment Action Programme
(7EAP) aims to achieve a gradual
deterioration in air pollutants. The EU
also acts at many levels to reduce
exposure to air pollution: through
legislation, co-operation with sectors
responsible for air pollution, national,
regional authorities and non-
government organizations and research.
EU policies aim to reduce exposure to air
pollution by reducing emissions and
setting limits and target values for air
Figure 1: Air Quality across Europe quality. Some examples of their policies
and conventions that have taken places
in recent years are: National Emission Ceilings Directive (NEC Directive), UNECE Convention on Long-
range Transboundary Air Pollution (the LRTAP Convention), Gothenburg multi-pollutant protocol,
and so on.

East Asia

Air pollution in East Asia is relatively high. The main reason for this is because of desertification in
China, and slash-and-burn agriculture in Southeast Asia.

Smoke from land clearing fires in Indonesia causes hazardous haze pollution in Southeast Asia every
year. Record high levels of air pollution caused by haze were reached in June 2013 in Singapore,
Malaysia and Indonesia. In response to regional pressure after the latest haze crisis, Indonesia finally
agreed to adopt the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution in 2002 and subsequently
the haze issue has become relatively much less severe.

For China, a new problem has arisen in the past few decades. Originally, the term yellow dust referred
to gusts of dusty winds originating from the deserts of northern China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. However,
in the recent years, the accelerated development of heavy industries, the surge in coal burning

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(EEA 2017)
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associated with them, and increased car ownership has resulted in increased amounts of pollutants
emitted into the atmosphere, which are then mixed with the yellow dust, forming a deadly
meteorological phenomenon that hits as far as the North American west coast.

South Korea

Recent data accumulated by the OECD suggested that Korea is one of the top ten countries with the
worst air quality in the world. The city Seoul has the worst air quality among advanced economies,
with its level of fine dust soaring over the past 25 years; while the air quality in the average OECD
countries has improved, Seouls air pollution has become worse.

While China remains a possible culprit for the decrease

in air quality, growing concern has discovered that
much of the root causes of the toxic air, estimated to
cost the country up to $9billion each year, lies at home
and not in China as the research has suggested. The
peninsula itself is a massive producer of fine dust, haze,
and toxic air with hazardous chemicals. Classified as a
first-degree carcinogen by the World Health
Organization, the invisible nanoparticles known as
PM2.5 penetrate deep into the respiratory system and
can trigger a variety of illnesses, including cancer. Data
has shown that these chemicals are especially high in
concentration in South Korea. Thus, the reason for the
recent surge of air pollution might be attributed to
Koreas increased number of power plants and vehicles
in the past few decades.
Figure 2: Air Quality Indexes for Major Cities
Much of the countrys pollutants come from vehicle
emissions and construction or industrial sites. Power plants, as can be seen from the graph, also play
a crucial role. Energy officials in Korea are pushing to
develop a greater coal-power capacity, which is
likely to exacerbate the problem rather than help
it.

The government operates 53 coal-power plants and

intends to construct 20 more in the next five years.
Ten ageing plants will be shut down by 2025.
Between 2005 and 2014, the capacity of the
countrys coal-power plants increased almost 95
percent. Inside these power plants, the burning of
the fossil fuel a source of carbon dioxide
emissions and smog, accounts for about 40 percent
of the countrys energy generation and also the
deterioration of atmospheric conditions.
Meanwhile, the South Korean government, despite
these actions, still believes that the continuation of
the worsening of air quality in their major cities are
due to China; thus it is time to deal with and search Figure 3: How South Koreas Energy Generation Has Changed
KCYS 2017 CHAIR REPORT Environment Committee

for effective solutions inside the home nation.

Central Asia

In countries in Central Asia, the

Figure 4: Severity of Air Pollution World-wide
atmospheric concentration of CO2
emissions is rising as the result of a
variety of human activities, of
which the burning of fossil fuels is
the most attributing factor. The
Five Central Asian countries have
all been suffering from serious
ecological issues due to transitions
of economy and resources.
Researches show that CO2
emissions were reduced quite substantially in
Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan since 1992.

These are due to a serious economic contractions after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Other factors
contributing to this result are improvements in energy intensities and the decline in energy related
activities in general. Even though, other two Central Asian countries, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan,
also experienced similar economic contraction for the same period, their CO2 emissions have
increased. This could be explained by their energy use patterns and energy market structures. Finally,
the study stresses that the Central Asian countries have been experiencing a recovery since the
beginning of the 2000s. Therefore, it is possible that CO2 emissions will begin to increase in the
future unless energy intensities and carbon content of energy can be decreased via policy
improvements or behavioral adaptation.
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan has one of the worst air qualities in Central Asia. As mentioned above, while countries
that experienced the economic contraction have significantly reduced their CO2 emissions,
Turkmenistan has failed to decrease their air pollutants. The country has one of the highest death
rates due to air pollution levels, and the main reason for such detrimental side effects are due to
rapid industrialization, the increasing number of cars and motorbikes, and the use of coal as the main
source of energy. More specifically, transportation is a significant source of air pollution due to the
increasing number of vehicles, the poor condition of many vehicles and use of leaded gasoline.
Moreover, high dust levels are observed in Turkmenistan, as dust storms are a frequent phenomenon
in the deserts of Turkmenistan. The inadequate provision of modern gas and dust catching equipment
and the insufficient planting of trees and bushes all contribute to exacerbate of the problem.

It is necessary to point out, that the pollution of atmospheric air in Turkmenistan has a mainly urban
character, as all major concerns are located within the limits of cities, excluding oil and gas production.

Uzbekistan

Despite Uzbekistan's rich natural environment and resources, decades of environmental neglect under the
Soviet Union, combined with slanted economic policies, made Uzbekistan one of the gravest of Central
Asias many environmental crises. The heavy use of agrochemicals and the lack of water treatment plants
are the key factors that have led to such devastating crises. More specifically, the heavy use of chemical
materials for agricultural purposes and poor water management has had a colossal effect on the quality
of air.
KCYS 2017 CHAIR REPORT Environment Committee

Salt and dust storms and the spraying of pesticides and defoliants for the cotton crop have led to
severe degradation of air quality in rural areas, especially those without the purification systems.

In urban areas, factories and auto emissions are a growing threat to air quality. Fewer than half of
factory smokestacks in Uzbekistan are equipped with filtration devices, and none have the capacity
to filter gaseous emissions. In addition, a high percentage of existing filters are defective or out of
operation. High levels of heavy metals such as lead, nickel, zinc, copper, mercury, and manganese
have been found in Uzbekistan's atmosphere, mainly from the burning of fossil fuels, waste materials,
and ferrous and nonferrous metallurgy. Because automobiles are relatively scarce, automotive
exhaust is not much of a concern in Uzbekistan.

Tajikistan

Tajikistan has shown a remarkable decrease in the deterioration of air quality due to its control towers
and regulations regarding factories and industrial cities. However, aluminum plants continue to emit
pollutants into the air, water, and soil. Nervous system, respiratory tract, and digestive organ problems
can be easily observed in the local population who reside near the areas where aluminum plants are
located. There needs to be an immediate solution to the existing aluminum plants to prevent the further
destruction of the local environment and of peoples health.

Kazakhstan

For Kazakhstan, haphazard urban planning has led to erosion of the citys green space, giving way to a
proliferation of tall buildings that have disrupted natural ventilation patterns, thus trapping pollution
churned out by the ever-growing number of outsized gas-guzzling vehicles that now clog roads.
Therefore the countrys environmental situation is at a critical cross-road, where the pressures of
economic growth without adequate environmental controls and the legacy of industrial production
are beginning to take their toll on society in terms of health. Its major attribution for the degradation
of air quality is factories and industrial waste, which should and must be handled and met with a
feasible solution that could gradually level down the deterioration the industry has done to the
environmental status. In response, a series of proactive planning has emerged through such strategic
initiatives as the Green Economy Concept with its accompanying actions that aim to reduce the
ecological footprint of economic activities, promote sustainable economic growth and place
Kazakhstan on a cleaner and greener development path.

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan has been spared from many of the environmental problems faced by its neighbours,
primarily because of its designated roles in the Soviet system that involved neither heavy industry
nor large-scale cotton production. Also, the economic downturn of the early 1990s reduced some of
the more serious effects of industrial and agricultural policy. Nevertheless, Kyrgyzstan has serious
problems because of inefficient use and pollution of air quality. Kyrgyzstans air pollution and the
status of its deterioration has become a serious problem in urban centers during the last years. The
major sources of air pollution are energy and construction materials sectors, mining and processing
industries, households using coal, and transportion, like most of the Central Asian communities. Air
quality deterioration is related to more extensive use of coal in combined heat power plants instead
of natural gas, using low-grade fuels in households, and old vehicles that let out hazardous chemical
materials.

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KCYS 2017 CHAIR REPORT Environment Committee

III. Definition of Key Terms

Outdoor air pollution

Outdoor air pollution is the increasing consequence of the inefficient combustion of fuels for use of
transportation, power generation and other human activities like home heating and cooking.
Combustion processes produce a complex mixture of pollutants that is comprised of both primary
emissions, such as diesel soot particles and lead, and the products of atmospheric transformation,
such as ozone and sulfate particles. Urban outdoor air pollution is estimated to cause 1.3 million
deaths worldwide per year. Children are particularly at risk due to the immaturity of their respiratory
organ systems. Those living in middle-income countries disproportionately experience this burden.
Exposure to air pollutants is largely beyond the control of individuals and requires action by public
authorities at the national, regional and even international levels.

Indoor air pollution

Indoor air pollution mostly deals with indoor cooking and heating with biomass fuels or coal, which
produces high levels of indoor smoke that contains a variety of health-damaging pollutants. There is
consistent evidence that exposure to indoor air pollution can lead to acute lower respiratory
infections in children under age five, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer in
adults. Indoor air pollution is responsible for 2 million deaths annually. Acute lower respiratory
infections, and pneumonia, continue to be the biggest killer of young children and this toll almost
exclusively falls on children in developing countries.

IV. Previous Actions

South Korea

South Korea has implemented numerous policies to reduce air pollution for more than three decades.
South Korea first enacted a regulation on air quality for the local environment in 1993. In 2002,
th
South Korea ranked 136 in terms of the Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI) out of 142
th
countries, and 139 in the air quality category. Concerned by their performance, South Korean
officials convened stakeholder summits and developed an array of mostly transportation-oriented
measures to reduce the pollutants in urban areas. Consequently, The Special Act on Metropolitan Air
Quality Improvement passed in 2003 and went into effect in 2005.

As a result, from 2001 to 2011, the annual average total mass of airborne PM2.5 and PM10 in Seoul fell
3 3
significantly, from 70.0 to 46.9 mg/m and from 44.4 to 23.4 mg/m respectively. The Korean
government strengthened its PM2.5 standards in 2012, and South Koreas Asian Institute for Energy and
Environmental Sustainability partnered with the EPI team to develop new indicators for air
pollutants including particulate matter, and persistent organic pollutants (POPs).

Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan has one of the highest death rates in all Central Asia, due to its extreme air pollution rate.
The State Committee of Turkmenistan for the Environment and the Protection of Land Resources is an
authorized state body in the field of environmental protection, and aims to eliminate the air pollution
issues. It takes measures to implement a unified state policy in the field of air protection, and the role of
the State Committee is to ensure the development of state programs in the fields of air protection and
monitoring of its implementation, establishment standards and norms of maximum permissible
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KCYS 2017 CHAIR REPORT Environment Committee

emissions of pollutants into the atmosphere, organization and conduct air monitoring, and
establishment of the order of inventory of emissions and of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Also, "the National Programme of Socio-economic Development of Turkmenistan for 2011-2030
years" is a program conducted by Turkmenistan that defines the air protection as one of its priorities.
The monitoring results are collected in the form of daily bulletins and distributed to relevant
organizations. Recently, they have established a law in the field of air protection that naturally
provides the basic framework and principles of the protection of air quality elements.

Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan has acknowledged the extent of the country's environmental problems, and have made a
commitment to address them. But the governmental structures to deal with these problems remain
confused and ill-defined, due to the changes that remain very unfamiliar to the local citizens as well
as the government. Thus, various nongovernmental and grassroots environmental organizations have
begun to form, some closely tied to the current government and others not. For example,
environmental issues were prominent points in the original platform of Birlik, the first major
opposition movement to emerge in Uzbekistan. By the mid-1990s, such issues had become a key
concern of all opposition groups and a cause of growing concern among the population.

In the first half of the 1990s, many plans were proposed to limit or discourage economic practices
that damaged the environment. Despite discussions of programs to require payments for resources
and to collect fines from heavy polluters, little has been accomplished. The obstacles are a lack of
law enforcement in these areas, inconsistent government economic and environmental planning,
corruption, and political instability.

Until the political will emerges to regard environmental and health problems as a threat not only to
the government in power but also to the very survival of Uzbekistan, the increasingly grave
environmental threat will not be addressed effectively.

Tajikistan

Tajikistan has not developed comprehensive legislation on climate protection yet, and in general
environmental issues are not reflected in environmental, air pollution or energy laws. The country is
nevertheless one of the regional pioneers in adaptation planning. Currently, Tajikistan is working on
the resiliency of clean air proliferation and the number of NGOs that strive for the similar motive has
arisen phenomenally. Despite the countrys efforts to ensure a reliable emissions inventory,
calculations vary from sector to sector.

Tajikistans INDC sets a 2030 target of a reduction to 80 - 90 percent of 1990 carbon emissions levels
without external assistance, and a reduction to 65 - 75 percent subject to substantial international
funding. On the adaption side, the INDC outlines an ambitious set of initiatives the country is
pursuing, but reports indicate that national funding is insufficient to implement all the programmes.

Kazakhstan

Over the recent decades, Kazakhstan has been striving for the promotion of a modern and resource
efficient economy that is worthy of international standing. Their series of proactive planning has
emerged through such strategic initiatives as the Green Economy Concept with its accompanying
actions that aim to reduce the ecological footprint of economic activities, promote sustainable
economic growth and place Kazakhstan on a cleaner and greener development path. Their most
current and main solution for the steps of improving air quality is establishing an internationally
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harmonized monitoring program of air emissions and ambient air quality that allows public access to
everyone in the nation, along with supporting policies that promote resource efficiency and cleaner
production of air.

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstans minister for the economy proposed that the nation will adopt an environmentally
friendly model to solve the massive air pollution issue. The government also expressed hope that the
country would emerge as a regional leader in creating a greener economy, offering an extensive list
of possible initiatives. These ranged from organic agriculture to energy-efficient lighting and
renewable technologies, and the creation of a special economic zone for green tech-companies.
They are also receiving aids from international donors to support their systems. In 2016, the minister
also established an international conference in discussing the previous issues and for sustainable
development drawing over 100 participants that included representatives from the World Bank and
German Development Corporation.

V. Possible Future Actions

The issue and the problems regarding the degradation of air quality within the respective nations
should be addressed in a systematic level of analysis. The delegates must think about why the past
actions made by states have not brought any notable change. For South Korea, there needs to be
both international and domestic measures to tackle these issues, in the short and long term.

For international measures, regarding the fine dust problem with China, South Korea should take a
bold step in establishing effective coordination with countries in the region. The domestic measures
are also incredibly pivotal to Korea, since most of the air degradation comes from within. First and
foremost, it needs to better inform the public and dilute any expectations that quick-fix solutions
exist. Press reports which cite unverified research by industry and academia have led to the
convenient misunderstanding that China bears full responsibility for the situation. As a result, there
has been resistance to strengthen domestic air control policies.

For Central Asia, especially Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, Post-Soviet economic transitions should
be reflected in the policies. As mentioned before, the main problem of these two countries is that
the governments do not have the facilitative measures to deal with the aftermath of the fall of
Soviet Union. And in accordance, energy intensities have been increasing significantly over the past
few years, and thus the suggested measures and examples could be the liberalization of energy
sectors that could enable the improvement of energy intensities. It can be argued that, with the
liberalization, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan can find possibilities to improve energy intensity effects
and in return to reduce CO2 emission levels. Similar aspects could be applied to the rest of the
Central Asian countries, where the stagnation of monitoring policies inside the industrial factories
are incredibly lacking and needs certain line of regulation.

VI. Further Readings

1) World Health Organization: Air Pollution

http://www.who.int/topics/air_pollution/en/

WHO aims to reach the highest level of physical and mental health in the world. It provides a variety
of information about air pollution worldwide including statistics and features.

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2) United Nations Environmental Programme: Chemicals & Waste

http://www.unep.org/chemicalsandwaste/
Industrial wastes are one of the main factors of air pollution in Central-Asia.

The organization is a branch of UN Environment, that cooperates with countries to build national
ability for the clean production.

3) United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

http://www2.unccd.int/
Yellow dust is also a principal source of air pollution.

It is an agreement that was signed to prevent desertification. It aims to provide financial and
technological support to developing countries and some nations which are experiencing serious
desertification through international efforts.

4) The Paris Agreement

http://unfccc.int/paris_agreement/items/9485.php

It is an international agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions worldwide in stages. It is an

action to deal with climate change after 2020, replacing the Kyoto Protocol.

Status of treaties

https://treaties.un.org/pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVII-
7- d&chapter=27&clang=_en

VII. Bibliography
Ballance, Robert, and Bishnu D. Pant. Environment Statistics in Central Asia: Progress and Prospects.
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EEA. "Air pollution." European Environment Agency. Jan 17, 2017.
https://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/air/intro (accessed Jul 7, 2017).
FLERMONECA. The State of the Environment in Central Asia. FLERMONECA, 2015.
Harris, Bryan, and Kang Buseong. South Korea joins ranks of worlds most polluted countries.
Financial Times. 29 Mar 2017. https://www.ft.com/content/b49a9878-141b-11e7-80f4-
13e067d5072c (accessed Jul 7, 2017).
James, Henry. "Kyrgyzstans Green Economy." The Diplomat. Dec 14, 2016.
http://thediplomat.com/2016/12/kyrgyzstans-green-economy/ (accessed Jul 7, 2017).
Karakaya, Etem, and Mustafa za. Driving forces of CO2 emissions in Central Asia: A
decomposition analysis of air pollution from fossil fuel combustion. ARID ECOSYSTEMS
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NSW Environmental Health. "Common Air Pollutants and Their Health Effects." New South Wales
Health. Apr 29, 2013. http://www.health.nsw.gov.au/environment/air/Pages/common-air-
pollutants.aspx (accessed Jul 7, 2017).
The Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia. Environmental NGOs in Central Asia. Almaty:
CAREC, 2003.

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The World Bank. Towards cleaner industry and improved air quality monitoring in Kazakhstan. The
World Bank and Ministry of Environment and Water Resources of the Republic of
Kazakhstan, 2013.
Trilling, David. Central Asias Environment Ranked Among Worst Globally. EurasiaNet.Org. 27 Jan
2012. http://www.eurasianet.org/node/64913 (accessed Jul 7, 2017).
WHO. Household air pollution and health. World Health Organisation. Feb 2016.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs292/en/.
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