What is carrying capacity of Karachi?

Answer 1

the carrying capacity of Karachi is lost due to the massive pollution in capital of the Sindh. if the initiations can not be taken to control the carrying capacity of the city, it may be possible that all resources will be depleted and that create the disturbance in the life standards of the people. it also trigger the massive destruction on the basis of ethnicity between the different ethical inhabitants.

following is the report of an organization that describes in detail about the environmental pollution in the Karachi.

Rising levels of chemicals in the air such as Nitric Oxide and Carbon Monoxide are adding more to Karachi's pollution. Further rise in the toxicity levels of these chemicals will create a catastrophe in all busy hubs of the city that is virtually choking itself.

Critical limits of sustenance with high levels of Nitric Oxides (Nox), Carbon Monoxide (CO) and particulate matter have reached in Karachi and any further addition of any polluting system that may increase their concentration is likely to break hell loose. This has been reported in a recently concluded report on the environmental assessment of Karachi titled 'Feasibility Study and Development of Transportation Control Plan of Karachi Metropolitan', prepared for City District Government Karachi (CDGK). The report conducted by a team of scientists led by Dr Arshad Ali Beg, ex DG Pakistan Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) revealed that the worst pollution was witnessed along the central business district extending from Liaquatabad No 10, Gurumandir, Old Numaish, Moulvi Musafirkhana, Shaheen Complex, Preedy Street, Empress Market, Metropole, Teen Talwar, Gizri Road, Baloch Colony, Mauripur Road, Gul Bai Intersection and Gulshan Chowrangi. According to the study, the major culprits behind this scenario are smoke belching commercial vehicles, inappropriately tuned engines and rickshaws causing din in a city trying hard to catch its breath.

With the ever-increasing number of vehicles on the roads, the total emission from gasoline, diesel oil, LPG and CNG during 2000-2001 was 2,503,791.52 tons/year. With the rise in the number of vehicles to 1.4 million in 2005, the emissions also rose to 4,741,350 tons.

According to the report, the major cause of pollution in Karachi is the smuggled fuel in use. Reportedly, as much as 40 percent fuel being used in vehicles plying on Karachi's roads are from smuggled sources. It is pretty 'unrefined' hence only multiplying its deleterious effects due to higher proportions of pollutants. Improperly tuned up engines are the second main cause of pollution of road environment, which are causing low levels of Oxygen (O2) leading to a reducing atmosphere and consequently higher levels of CO, Hydrocarbons (HC), Hydrogen (H2) and Hydrogen Sulphide (H2S) in the exhaust emissions. Preliminary analysis of data on automobile engine performance indicates that conversion of gasoline driven engines to CNG is causing an increase in NOx emission well beyond the permissible limits suggested by World Bank (WB) as well as World Health Organisation.

Similarly, emission of particulate matter from rickshaws remains high despite their conversion to LPG and their use of cheap lubricants owing on their double stroke engines. It is now a common observation that while driving on Karachi roads even on a balmy evening one experiences nausea, heat and humidity in the immediate surroundings despite being far away from the sea. This coupled with the miasma and an average rise in temperature by 3-5 degree centigrades in the microclimate is a direct result of the pollution around us. The study has also found that the average pollution level of NOx concentration is higher by a factor of 1.14-1.21; CO by 0.67-1.11; particulate matters (PM10) by 1.06-2.06 when compared with that suggested by WB guidelines while the level of SO2 is lower by a factor of 0.38-0.51, and O3 0.16-0.28.

It was found that concentration of total suspended particles (TSP) exceeds 300-450 ug/m3 along the sampled area some of which are open to the flushing action of wind, whereas the WHO limit for suspended particulate matter is 120 ug/m3. Similar is the case with Lead (Pb) and Cadmium (Cd) in TSP whose concentration ranges in each case between 2.5 and 4.12 ug/m3 both show higher values than the limits set by WHO and United States Enviornmental Protection Agency (USEPA). On the other hand, the noise level deviates by a factor of 0.87-0.95 applied on the National Environment Quality Standards (NEQS), which are suggested to be 85 dB(A) exceeding the WB guidelines by a factor of 1.06-1.17. The concentration of CO, NOx, as well as PM10 are in excess of 5 µg/m3, which is the maximum limit suggested by WB guidelines for maintaining the status of air sheds in the unpolluted category. This, according to Dr. Beg "implies that the threshold limits for survival under hazardous environmental conditions have been reached and any further addition to the existing pollution level could be catastrophic." Against this backdrop that one should take note of the WHO reports, which suggest that three million people now die each year from the effects of air pollution.

A study published in The Lancet in 2000, concluded that air pollution in France, Austria, and Switzerland is responsible for more than 40,000 deaths annually. About half of these deaths can be traced to air pollution from vehicle emissions.

In early 80s, perpetual smog would hang over M.A. Jinnah Road during the rush hours. The condition has only worsened more as now the haze hangs virtually on most of the 26 spots sampled for quality of air during the survey provided they are not subject to the flushing action of the wind. The lethal cocktail of ozone, CO2, CO, SO2 and NO reduce oxygen of the surrounding environment and increase humidity. The amalgam proves damaging for the soft tissues of eye, skin, nose, throat and lungs. It has been found that pollutants interact with the blood haemoglobin reducing its oxygen carrying capacity. Out of 200 samples 134 showed significant alteration in the blood picture. Their haemoglobin level on an average was 15.09 g/dl, Red Blood Corpuscles (RBC) 5.36, MCH 28.01; MCHC 31.52; while the eosinophils count was 3.55. In the normal cases, the haemoglobin level is at an average of 16.73 g/dl. The RBC is 5.81, the MCH is 28.65; MCHC is 32.52; while the eosinophils count was 2.57 for subjects who remain at the intersections of the corridors for over six hours.

The report suggest that "since the alteration in blood picture is significant for the type of samples studied, it could be suggested that air pollution related to transportation has an important role in inducing ill-health among the sampled population at the impacted sites." It was also observed that the hearing of about 70 percent of the volunteers at the surveyed sites was also impaired and is mostly related to din and smoke causing rickshaws. The irony is that in 2002, the then DIG Traffic, Saud Ahmad had introduced environmentally sound 'silencers' for the rickshaws which not only contained the harmful particulate matter as well as the deafening pitch, but the project was scrapped following the DIGs transfer.

Back in 2002, a medical study involving nearly 1000 traffic cops was conducted to find out the impact of environmental pollution on their health. Saud Ahmad who also headed the Police Public Medical Care Project found horrifying scenario commissioned the study. According to Dr. Syed Safdar Hussain who examined the traffic police, as many as 80 percent cops reported chronic ENT problems, 40 percent showed signs of problems associated with lungs some of which developed into asthma and TB. Due to nearly 10-hour job on the road amidst smoke and blowing horns almost 90 per cent showed symptoms of irritability and tension; 45 per cent of the cases ranging in 35 to 50 years of age suffered from hypertension. Most of these traffic cops had 10 years of service and they manifested body pains as well. However, these figures were not absolute as they needed a much-detailed study and these disorders can't be taken in isolation as they are also related to nutrition levels.

However, the fact remains that pollution genie is out of the bottle horrifying both the oblivious and clueless citizens and an insensitive government.

The following links shows the overall mean values of the maximum, minimum and averages of the different pollutants and noise levels at the different observation points:

http://jang.com.pk/thenews/jun2006-weekly/citypulse-05-06-2006/index.htm#1

http://asp.isb.sdnpk.org/sdnpnews/search_detail1.asp?newsID_form=50417