Pandreco - I shared your post with a friend who was brought up in India. He gave a reply that will interest you, and I'm hoping you'll have a few comments.
"Thanks for sharing the article. As the article mentions, air pollution has always been a problem in Pakistan - and in recent years it has become much worse. As a kid growing up in Lahore, I distinctly remember that on clear days it was possible to see the Himalaya mountains to the north. That is no longer the case. When Fawn and I visited in 2019, there was one morning when it was hard to see a wall only 100 yards away. You could directly look at the sun without hurting your eyes - it looked like an orange ball in the sky. In the past, the smog cleared up pretty well once you left the major cities. Not so any more. When we were there this last time, the smog stayed with us on a trip to a village probably 40 or 50 miles from the city.
Having said all that, something the article didn't mention is that smog in the Punjab (where the city of Lahore is) is, to a certain extent, seasonal. Subjectively, I would say that vehicle emissions are down from when we lived there. For example, the city of Lahore has banned rickshaws with two-stroke engines which were a major source of pollution. I have often seen hordes of rickshaws pouring out huge clouds of blue smoke from the oil mixed in with the petrol they ran on. You don't see that any more. Similarly, a large proportion of the other vehicles have been converted to run on natural gas - of which Pakistan is a major producer. (Going by the article, Pakistan is no longer self-sufficient in gas, but they do produce much of what they use.)
So what is the major source of the air pollution which plagues the country and why do I say it's seasonal? It's because much of it comes from burning off the fields in the Fall. During that part of the year, the prevailing winds come from the East. So, it isn't just the Pakistani farmers who are to blame. The winds bring in huge quantities of smoke from the burn-off in India. Then, about this time of year (November), when the main harvest is over and the fields are plowed for the new crop, air pollution goes way down and the air becomes breathable again. During the monsoon season, which in Lahore begins July 15, the heavy rains wash all the crud out of the air. During the monsoon, there is little sustained pollution.
It would be interesting to know where Pakistan is getting the coal to run the generating plants mentioned in the article. India has huge coal deposits, but Pakistan does not (unless there have been new discoveries since we lived there). I would have thought they would pursue the nuclear option. Since they have the knowhow and expertise to build a bomb, surely they can build a reactor and generating station? Why they don't pursue small plants to run individual cities is a puzzle to me."
Pandreco - I shared your post with a friend who was brought up in India. He gave a reply that will interest you, and I'm hoping you'll have a few comments.
"Thanks for sharing the article. As the article mentions, air pollution has always been a problem in Pakistan - and in recent years it has become much worse. As a kid growing up in Lahore, I distinctly remember that on clear days it was possible to see the Himalaya mountains to the north. That is no longer the case. When Fawn and I visited in 2019, there was one morning when it was hard to see a wall only 100 yards away. You could directly look at the sun without hurting your eyes - it looked like an orange ball in the sky. In the past, the smog cleared up pretty well once you left the major cities. Not so any more. When we were there this last time, the smog stayed with us on a trip to a village probably 40 or 50 miles from the city.
Having said all that, something the article didn't mention is that smog in the Punjab (where the city of Lahore is) is, to a certain extent, seasonal. Subjectively, I would say that vehicle emissions are down from when we lived there. For example, the city of Lahore has banned rickshaws with two-stroke engines which were a major source of pollution. I have often seen hordes of rickshaws pouring out huge clouds of blue smoke from the oil mixed in with the petrol they ran on. You don't see that any more. Similarly, a large proportion of the other vehicles have been converted to run on natural gas - of which Pakistan is a major producer. (Going by the article, Pakistan is no longer self-sufficient in gas, but they do produce much of what they use.)
So what is the major source of the air pollution which plagues the country and why do I say it's seasonal? It's because much of it comes from burning off the fields in the Fall. During that part of the year, the prevailing winds come from the East. So, it isn't just the Pakistani farmers who are to blame. The winds bring in huge quantities of smoke from the burn-off in India. Then, about this time of year (November), when the main harvest is over and the fields are plowed for the new crop, air pollution goes way down and the air becomes breathable again. During the monsoon season, which in Lahore begins July 15, the heavy rains wash all the crud out of the air. During the monsoon, there is little sustained pollution.
It would be interesting to know where Pakistan is getting the coal to run the generating plants mentioned in the article. India has huge coal deposits, but Pakistan does not (unless there have been new discoveries since we lived there). I would have thought they would pursue the nuclear option. Since they have the knowhow and expertise to build a bomb, surely they can build a reactor and generating station? Why they don't pursue small plants to run individual cities is a puzzle to me."