Breathing fresh air is difficult sometimes in Bali<\/p>\n
Wahyoe Boediwardhana, Denpasar<\/p>\n
Bali is celebrated for its natural beauty, yet, in recent years,
\na high number of people here have been treated for respiratory
\nproblems, which are reportedly caused by increasing air pollution
\non the island.<\/p>\n
Pollution watchdog the Foundation of Focus on Bali in a report
\nbased on medical records from Sanglah public hospital here, said
\nthat air pollution in Bali, particularly in Denpasar, needed to
\nbe seriously addressed.<\/p>\n
Foundation director Yuyun Ismawati, told a seminar here that
\nthe number of patients that suffered respiratory problems as a
\nresult of air pollution stood at around 6,000 a year from 2001 to
\n2003.<\/p>\n
In 2001, 6,364 people with respiratory problems were treated
\nat the hospital. Manager of the hospital's medical records I
\nNengah Semadi, said patients attended the hospital two or three
\ntimes on average for treatment.<\/p>\n
\"Of that number, 129 patients were hospitalized,\" she said.<\/p>\n
The following year, new cases of respiratory problems rose to
\n7,549, with 104 patients needing to stay in hospital.<\/p>\n
The number of new patients with respiratory problems dropped
\nslightly to 6,446 in 2003, with 108 patients admitted.<\/p>\n
Yuyun said motorized vehicles and garbage incineration were
\nmostly to blame for air pollution, but vehicles were the greatest
\ncontributor.<\/p>\n
She further said that the number of vehicles on the streets
\nshould be regulated.<\/p>\n
Data at the Bali Police's vehicle registration office shows
\nthat there are 1,158,057 motorized vehicles on the island.<\/p>\n
\"About 628,929 of those are registered in Denpasar,\" the Bali
\nPolice's director of traffic Snr. Com. Soenardi said.<\/p>\n
According to Agus Saefudin, head of emission standard
\nevaluation at the Ministry of the Environment, a vehicle, whether
\nit is a sedan, a truck or a bus, emits a total of 7.2 tons of
\ncarbon monoxide and 0.88 tons of hydro carbon a year.<\/p>\n
\"That is based on the standard calculation, in accordance with
\nthe limit set by the government, and provided the vehicle is well
\nmaintained,\" Agus said.<\/p>\n
It is estimated that 1.25 million tons of carbon monoxide is
\nemitted yearly by vehicles on Denpasar's roads.<\/p>\n
The air is also polluted by 553 thousand tons of hydro carbon
\nreleased yearly.<\/p>\n
\"Compared with (the condition of vehicles in) Greater Jakarta,
\nwhere random emission tests were conducted last year, the
\ncondition of vehicles in Bali or Denpasar is not much different,\"
\nAgus said.<\/p>\n
Yuyun warned that the increasing number of vehicles from year
\nto year was also becoming a serious problem.<\/p>\n
In fact, she said, it has already posed an imminent threat to
\nthe health of 561,800 residents of Denpasar.<\/p>\n
Yuyun said, however, the fact that Bali is an island stands in
\nits favor, as coastal winds blow away much of the pollution.
\nShe said in other areas, such as Bandung in West Java, which is
\nlocated in a basin, pollution levels could be higher.<\/p>\n
\"But I'm not saying that for sure as we would need to conduct
\nresearch to prove it,\" Yuyun said.<\/p>\n
What is certain, she said, is that clean air could become
\nsomething that people used to associate with Bali, a distant,
\nalbeit fond, memory.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/breathing-fresh-air-is-difficult-sometimes-in-bali-1447893297",
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