(Tehran) Schoolchildren and certain civil servants were ordered to “stay at home” this week in Tehran, once again suffocated by air pollution, a recurring phenomenon in winter which worsens from year to year.
The approximately nine million inhabitants of the Iranian capital are not the only ones: the “pollution red alert” has been triggered in recent days in most major cities, from Isfahan to Tabriz.
In Tehran, schools and colleges have been closed since Sunday and classes are taught online.
“Sensitive” populations, that is to say children, the elderly, pregnant women, etc., “must avoid going outside and doing physical exercise,” indicates the province. Which also calls on civil servants with fragile health to telework.
“The situation is horrible. My throat itches as soon as I go out into the street,” says Azam Keyvan, a 40-year-old employee who “hasn’t been able to exercise for several days.”
“We can’t breathe anymore,” adds Saeed Sattari, who sells cooked meals on the street. As people avoid going out, “I am going bankrupt because of the pollution,” laments this 42-year-old man.
The scenario has been repeating itself for several days: the blue sky of dawn gradually gives way to an increasingly opaque yellowish fog. Which completely obscures the view of the majestic Elbourz mountains dominating the northern districts.
Tehran is considered one of the most polluted cities in the world, although the situation is not as acute as in other megacities such as New Delhi, where levels of carcinogenic microparticles far exceed the maximum levels set by the World Health Organization (WHO).
“Since the beginning of the year, Tehran has only experienced nine days of clean air,” the service responsible for monitoring atmospheric quality said on Monday.
The fuel oil in question
It is between November and February that pollution peaks in this city which rises up to 1800 meters above sea level, due to the phenomenon known as “thermal inversion”, which causes cold air at altitude prevents hot, polluted air from escaping.
Many experts point to the enormous health and economic cost of exposure to fine particles, which causes the premature death of some 40,000 people per year across the country, according to media reports.
“Closing schools can help, but it is not enough,” said Mahdi, a 20-year-old student. For Azam Keyvan, “offices should also be closed in order to reduce traffic”, Tehran being known for its immense traffic jams.
“School closures do no good to reduce pollution, but they do help to expose children less,” explains Professor Sadegh Partani.
A World Bank report listed heavy vehicles, motorcycles, refineries and thermal power plants as the main causes of pollution.
Members of the municipal council this week named poor quality fuel oil used by power stations as the main culprit, which the government disputes.
“Electricity supply has become more dependent on thermal and gas power plants, which naturally increases pollution,” says Partani. “The best solution to reduce it would therefore be to favor renewable energies, such as solar,” adds this expert on environmental issues.
This question is one of the issues at the COP28 climate summit currently being held in Dubai, but Iranian President Ebrahim Raïssi refused to participate to protest against Israel’s presence in the context of the war in Gaza.