Reading and Critical Evaluation Essay :Current sustainability issues and solutions

Abstract

Clean air is important for good health. Unfortunately, the air that we breathe in is full of

hazardous substances that can cause adverse health effects. However, Malaysians should be

aware of the importance of clean air and what steps should be taken to maintain good air

quality. Besides the excessive use of transportation that contributes to the air pollution,

Malaysia also became the victim of the open burning of forests in Sumatra, Indonesia that has

caused the massive amount of haze period.

Malaysia, however, has taken steps to overcome the problem of air pollution like reducing the

use of automobiles, planting more plants and enforcing the Law on open burning. To sum up,

air pollution can be controlled with the right steps taken and to a healthier lifestyle.

Introduction

What is air pollution? It can be described as anything that contaminates the atmosphere that

interrupts the natural chemicals of the air, gases, dust particles or fumes and smoke that

makes it harmful for us living beings (Woodford, 2018). Two ways these pollutants can occur

is either by natural circumstances or the result of human activities.

Air pollution has mostly affected human health in a way that it affects the human respiratory

system and cardiovascular system. Besides, air quality can impact climate change and

conversely climate change can impact air quality. Food production is also threatened by air

pollution by the emissions of nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds that damage

the ability of plants to develop by penetrating into the plant (Explain that Stuff, 2018).

According to the Air Pollutant Index (API), Malaysia, the recent API in Kuala Lumpur is 52

that can deteriorate significantly during the haze period. Malaysia is taking actions on

reducing air pollution and maintaining the air quality by promoting and encouraging the

public to opt for public transport and reducing the use of automobiles. Controlling open

burning activities in Malaysia will also help improve the air quality as it can control the

number of harmful emissions of pollutants into the air.

Findings

Vehicles are the primary contributors of air pollution because of the nitrogen oxide from the

exhaust and the lead in petrol. Steps like carpooling and opting for public transportation like

the train or bus will reduce the number of cars on the road and will decrease the usage of

fossil fuels. Despite these simple steps, Malaysia has enforced to cut down the carbon

emissions intensity by at least 45% by 2030. The Malaysian government also introduced an

extent of air quality control measures for automobiles that are in line with the European

standards. Improving the quality of the fuel and reducing the use of diesel fuels and

encouraging non-motorized forms of transportation by introducing monthly passes to train

users in some ways the Government of Malaysia has implemented for the past few months in

the hopes of reducing air pollution. Other than that, the exhaust ceiling for vehicles is also

introduced to be implemented as a way of controlling air pollution.

From the year 2012 to 2016, the number of vehicles (Ceicdata.com, 2018) on the road has

increased which has led to an increase in carbon monoxide.

Year

Number of vehicles on the

road (millions)

Emission of carbon

monoxide by vehicles (in

million metric tons)

2012 21.8 1.87

2013 23.0 1.87

2014 23.8 1.94

2015 25.15 2.0

2016 26.25 2.04

Trees, however, conserve energy. Therefore planting trees is an efficient yet not expensive

way to tackle air pollution. It’s no surprise that trees play a crucial role in decreasing

emissions and dangerous fumes in cities. Thus, expanding the space given over to urban

forests or greener areas will not only improve the air quality at the primary level but also

helps to fight climate change. Besides, incorporating plants into buildings to absorb the

carbon dioxide, block particulate matter and reduce the buildings from overheating

(Unece.org, 2018). This is called green architecture. In some countries, rooftop and vertical

farms are introduced where the people can grow crops on rooftops and inside the building for

an efficient use of the space in cities that are limited these days due to development. WWF of

Malaysia has recently urged the citizens to plant a tree as a contribution to the International

Day of Forests and also a step closer to a greener Malaysia. Besides, the local authorities

have pledged to set aside more areas as public parks and nature reserves in cities.

We can see that Malaysia’s forest is actually increasing and not decreasing, this can be the

result of planting more trees and also encourage individuals to plant more trees.

Year Coverage Area (ha) Increase in 5 years (ha)

2000 21,600,000 +14000

2010 21,614,000 +14000

2015 21,628,000 +14000

Another huge contributor to the harmful pollutants in the atmosphere is open burning and

deforestation that emits hazardous smoke into the atmosphere ​(Akeredolu and Sonibare, 2004)​.

Therefore Malaysian Government has taken few steps to reduce and in the mere future

prevent the act of open burning completely. The Government enforced the Environmental

Quality Act that states the prevention of open burning which restricts individuals or

companies of the release of air pollutants into the air. The Department of Environment also

charges a penalty of RM2000 for each offense. Malaysia holds the world’s highest rate of

deforestation as most of Malaysia’s forests are being converted for industrial oil palm

plantations. Not only does it cost the lives of millions of species it also causes haze that

impacts the air quality. The Malaysian Government has been taking actions to address the

problem of deforestation by enhancing protected areas and forest certification to create a

balance between conservation of the forest and the development of the forest ​(Doe.gov.my, 

2018)​.

The API of a moderate air quality is 51-100, however, according to the graph below, we can

see how haze has affected the API up to 420 (highest) at 5 pm in Port Klang. This is a

situation that occurred in 2015 which had Malaysians worried and triggered.

API Reading Condition

0-50 Good

50-100 Moderate

100-200 Unhealthy

201-300 Very unhealthy

301-500 Hazardous

Conclusion

In conclusion, air pollution has been a continuing worry in many countries in the Southeast

Asia region and Malaysia is one country that is worst affected. However, the Government of

Malaysia has been taking serious actions to overcome this problem which in my opinion will

definitely improve the air quality of this country. Reducing air pollution will help move

towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) of UN as a cleaner and fresher air in the

atmosphere promotes good health and well-being, the 3​rd​ Goal of SDG and also reduces the

medical expenses of individuals, therefore, decreases poverty. Besides, improving the air

quality will also achieve the goals of Sustainable Development of Clean water and sanitation,

as harmful pollutants mixing with precipitation that causes acid rain can be prevented.

However, air pollution is not something that can be solved in a day or two, therefore,

updating ourselves every day is important. Being aware of the issue of air pollution in

Malaysia by simply reading the newspaper about the current condition and also reading up

about the harmful pollutants and what can be done to overcome it is a way to not only

increase my knowledge on this topic but also helps me be more aware of my surroundings.

(1089 words)

References

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pollution control. ​Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal​,

15(6), pp.574-583.

- Ceicdata.com. (2018). Malaysia | Number of Motor Vehicle: Total | Economic

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vehicles registration/number-of-motor-vehicle-total [Accessed 13 Dec. 2018].

- Doe.gov.my. (2018). [online] Available at: http://www.doe.gov.my/portalv1/wp-

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- Thestar.com.my. (2018). ​Malaysia is green and growing - Nation | The Star Online​.

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[online] Explain that Stuff. Available at:

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