ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly has been informed that a National Cleaner Air Policy has been formulated to address the growing issue of air pollution and recurring problem of smog in major cities of the country.

Responding to a question during the Question Hour in the house on Monday, Minister for Climate Change Sherry Rehman said that the main objectives of the policy are formulating a framework for improving air quality, citizens’ health, food security, reducing trans-boundary air pollution and expanding economic activity.

She further said that the policy identified priority interventions including implementation of Euro-5 and Euro-6 fuel quality standards, enforcement of emission standards for industries, prevention of burning of agriculture residues as well as open burning of municipal solid waste and promoting low emission cooking technologies.

Responding to another question, the minister said that despite a meager overall contribution to greenhouse gases, Pakistan is greatly affected by climate threats including water stress, desertification glacier melting, extreme weather events and the spread of disease.

She said these threats pose severe challenges to Pakistan in terms of ecology, agriculture, economic development and sustainability with no significant visual benefits. However, the government has proactively taken initiatives to address the climatic impacts to turn the challenges into opportunities.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023