The National Environmental Agency Measures Pollutants in the Air

The National Environmental Agency (NEA), a sub-group within the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture, released its recent findings of atmospheric air quality in various parts of Georgia.

In Tbilisi, Batumi, Rustavi and Kutaisi there are concentrations of “major pollutants,” the press release said. Most of the atmospheric substances were observed within the norm, except for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particulate matter (PM10).

Last Thursday, the concentrations of PM10 were 1.3 times the norm in Rustavi and 1.5 times the norm in Kutaisi and Batumi. Over the past week, the average amount of NO2 concentrations was 1.5 times the norm on Tsereteli Avenue in Tbilisi and 1.6 times the norm on Abuseridze Street in Batumi.

Nitrogen dioxide, one in a group of gases called nitrogen oxides (NOx), is a pollutant released into the air during the burning of fuel, such as with cars, trucks, buses and power plants. Breathing air with a high concentration of NO2 can cause respiratory issues such as coughing, wheezing or difficulty breathing, and can also aggravate asthma, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

PM10 is all particulate matter—such as dust, pollen, soot, smoke, etc.—that is ten micrometers or less in diameter. Health effects include allergic reactions, respiratory issues and, in some cases, cancer.

The NEA also took air samples last week from four locations in Tbilisi and analyzed them in a laboratory, concluding that the lead content in the samples “did not exceed the permissible norm.”

Just last month, however, UNICEF Georgia released the results of a study that determined that 41% of children have dangerous levels of lead in their blood.

Weekly data on atmospheric air quality in Georgia can be found on the website of the National Environmental Agency and daily data on air quality can be found at air.gov.ge.

By Lucy Papachristou

Photo Source: Pixabay