Oversight of the Overseers – Air Pollution in Iran

The Open Data Iran database is an innovation project aimed at collecting data related to Iran in one place and presenting it in easily accessible formats. Radio Farda, in collaboration with this entity, publishes a series of articles. On October 27, the head of the United Nations Environment Program invited governments, businesses, civil society, and citizens worldwide to join the fight against air pollution once and for all. In light of these calls aimed at raising awareness among civil society and citizens and empowering support for practical action, we have focused our attention on the status of air pollution monitoring mechanisms in Iran. Iran is facing a severe environmental emergency due to the effects of heavy oil-dependent industries and population growth. The government acknowledges the dimensions of this crisis: Iranian officials have stated that 270 people die daily from pollution-related diseases in Tehran alone. But what actions is the government taking to address this emergency? In this article, we aim to examine the existing infrastructure for monitoring air quality in Iran, assess their effectiveness, identify gaps in their reporting, and highlight areas where the government can better track poor air quality. The Iranian Air Quality Control Company publishes extensive data on its website and provides detailed measurements of air quality across the country. These platforms are important for keeping citizens informed about the health risks of air pollution in various areas and for making informed decisions to mitigate the risks of poor air quality. The Open Data Iran collected four weeks of data from the Iranian Air Quality Control Company’s database from September 1 to 31 to assess the quality of the published data and identify areas where the company's data can be further expanded to meet citizens' needs. Unfortunately, the database that the Iranian Air Quality Control Company launched in early 1396 does not cover complete information from all pollutant measurement stations. According to the Environmental Protection Organization, there are a total of 190 stations in the country, of which only data from 91 stations is accessible in this database. This means less than half of the total stations. Furthermore, the available data is somewhat incomplete. Overall, only 9 out of 31 provinces published more than one measurement for each of the air pollutants (carbon monoxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, particulate matter less than 10 microns, and particulate matter less than 2.5 microns) during the month examined. Let's review this data and sequentially address these pollutants. The Environmental Protection Organization recently announced that Iran is a leader in fulfilling its commitments to the 1987 Montreal Protocol. This treaty is designed to protect the ozone layer by gradually reducing substances that contribute to the depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer (including CFCs, HCFCs, halons, and others). Although the United Nations has praised Iran for its efforts to limit ozone-depleting substances, much more work is needed in gathering and recording measurements of harmful ground-level ozone emissions that can have negative health effects. 48% of Iran's provinces do not publish ozone measurements, preventing citizens and civil society from tracking their air quality and holding the government and polluters accountable.