Air quality index (AQI) and PM2.5 air pollution in Hong Kong

The quality of air in Hong Kong is considered a serious matter. For over 30 per cent of the year, visibility is less than 8 kilometres. Haze is often seen ... LogincityWorldHongKongSARAirqualityinHongKongAirqualityindex(AQI)andPM2.5airpollutioninHongKongLOCATEMELASTUPDATE01:00,Dec20(localtime)601.1KpeoplefollowthiscityHongKongAirQualityMapReal-timeHongKongairpollutionmapExploremapAirQualityDatacontributor(s)Station(s)operatedbyContributorsSeeall3Jointhemovement!Getamonitorandcontributeairqualitydatainyourcity.BecomeacontributorFindoutmoreaboutcontributorsanddatasourcesWeatherWhatisthecurrentweatherinHongKong?WeatherBrokencloudsTemperature19°CHumidity49%Wind12.9mp/hPressure1019mbAirpollutionhascostanestimated6,900deaths*inHongKongin2021LEARNMORE*Airpollutionalsocostapproximately$3,200,000,000USDinHongKongin2021.liveaqicityrankingReal-timeHongKongSARcityranking#cityUSAQI1TaiPo,TaiPo932HongKong,HongKongSAR7701:00,Dec20(localtime)SEEWORLDAQIRANKING3DanimatedairpollutionmapliveHongKongaqirankingReal-timeHongKongairqualityranking#stationUSAQI1InternationalCollegeHongKong1022TuenMunPublicLibrary993TungChungHealthCentre964CausewayBay895HomeAffairsDepartmentYuenLongPublicEnquiryServiceCenter876ShaTinGovernmentSecondarySchool827TaiPoGovernmentOfficesBuilding828TsuenWan829KwunTong7810MongKok7801:00,Dec20(localtime)SEEWORLDAQIRANKINGHongKongwebcam5:11,Dec19IsthereairpollutioninHongKong?USAQI77liveAQIindexModerateOverviewWhatisthecurrentairqualityinHongKong?AirpollutionlevelAirqualityindexMainpollutantModerate77USAQIPM2.5PollutantsConcentrationPM2.524.4µg/m³!PM2.5x4.9PM2.5concentrationinHongKongairiscurrently4.9timesabovetheWHOannualairqualityguidelinevalueHealthRecommendationsHowtoprotectfromairpollutioninHongKong?CloseyourwindowstoavoiddirtyoutdoorairSensitivegroupsshouldreduceoutdoorexerciseForecastHongKongairqualityindex(AQI)forecastDayPollutionlevelWeatherTemperatureWindThursday,Dec16Moderate 53USAQIFriday,Dec17Moderate 69USAQISaturday,Dec18UnhealthyforSensitiveGroups 102USAQISunday,Dec19Moderate 84USAQITodayModerate 77USAQI19°14°32.4mp/hTuesday,Dec21Moderate 97USAQI18°15°32.4mp/hWednesday,Dec22UnhealthyforSensitiveGroups 114USAQI20°16°10.8mp/hThursday,Dec23UnhealthyforSensitiveGroups 126USAQI19°19°18mp/hFriday,Dec24UnhealthyforSensitiveGroups 131USAQI20°18°14.4mp/hSaturday,Dec25Unhealthy 151USAQI20°18°32.4mp/hInterestedinhourlyforecast?GettheappHistoricalHistoricairqualitygraphforHongKongHowtobestprotectfromairpollution?ReduceyourairpollutionexposureinHongKongCarairpurifierAirpurifierAirqualitymonitorAIRQUALITYANALYSISANDSTATISTICSFORHongKong HowbadistheairqualityinHongKong? ThequalityofairinHongKongisconsideredaseriousmatter.Forover30percentoftheyear,visibilityislessthan8kilometres.Hazeisoftenseenhangingoverthecitywhichcanlastforseveraldays,dependingonthedirectionoftheprevailingwinds.Becauseofthisreductioninairquality,casesofbronchialinfectionsandasthmahasrisensharply.Theaverageairqualityindexfor2019was96USAQIwithaPM2.5of33.5µg/m³togetherwithsignificantamountsofPM10,O3,NO2,SO2andCO,accordingtodatapublishedontheIQAirwebsite.TheWorldHealthOrganisation(WHO)recommendPM2.5levelstobenohigherthan10µg/m3.Thequalityofairismonitoredby11stationsand3roadsideones.Readingsaretakenonanhourlybasistomeasurethesuspendedfineparticulatematterwhichisproventobemosthazardoustohealth. Ground-levelozone(O3)isformedwhenVOCs(VolatileOrganicCompounds)andoxidesofnitrogen(NOx)reactwithultravioletlight.Themainsourceofthesepollutantscomesfromvehicleemissionsofwhichthereisplentythroughoutthecity.Ground-levelozoneisatitsheightduringtheafternoonwhenthesun’sraysarethestrongestandevenmoresoduringthesummermonths.Itisreportedthattheozonelevelhasincreasedby21percentwhencomparedtofiguresfrom2019.Annualfiguresreleasedbythemonitoringnetworkshowozoneconcentrationsof58µg/m³whichisthesameasitwasin2017buttheworstrecordedsince2011.Dataiscollectedfrom23monitorssituatedinHongKong,MacauandGuangdongaspartofajointinitiativetosignificantlyimprovethequalityofairwithintheregion. On3rdSeptember2020,airpollutionwasrecordedasbeingatthe“serious”levelinpartsofHongKong.Thisispartlyduetothehottestsummereverrecordedsincerecordsbeganin1884 WhyisHongKongairqualitysobad? Over50percentofthepollutedairinHongKongcomesfromlocalsources.Vehiclesonthecity’sstreetswiththeiridlingenginesandthefumesemittedbymarinevessels.Thereareanestimated275vehiclesperkilometrecongestingtheroadsinHongKongwhichareknownashavingthehighestdensityofvehiclesanywhereintheworld.Anothercontributingfactoristheemissionsfromthecoal-firedpowerstations.ExternalfactorsalsocomeintoplaywiththesubstantialamountofpollutedairwhichdriftsdownfromneighbouringChina.EmissionsfromtheheartofChina’smanufacturingindustriesinthePearlRiverDeltacausedbythousandsoffactoriesarecarriedbytheprevailingwindsinthedirectionofHongKong.Twoothermajorcontributorsarethetwolargestproducersofelectricity,namelyHKElectricholdingsandChinaLightandPower,betweenthemtheyemitmorethan75,000tonnesofCarbonDioxide(CO2)intotheatmosphere. PM2.5particulatematterisacomplexmixtureofmanydangerouspollutantssuchasblackcarbon(BC),smoke,nitrates,dust,sulphatesandevenrubber.Thesemicroscopicparticlesbypassthebody’sdefencemechanismandbecomedeeplylodgedinthealveoliatthebaseofthebronchialtubes.Becauseoftheirsize,theycaneasilypassthroughbodytissueandeventuallyentertheheart.Onceinsidethehearttheycanleadtoirregularheartbeats,nonfatalheartattacksandprematuredeathofthosesufferingfrompre-existingconditions. Mostofthesulphurdioxide(SO2)comesfromvehicleemissionsandtheburningoffossilfuels.Aswellasaggravatinghealthproblemsitalsomixeswithairandraintoproducesulphuricacidoracidrain.Thiscanbedamagingtoallbuildingsandstatuesthatitfallsonaswellashavingabadeffectonanyplantsortrees.Cropssufferduetotheeffectsofacidrain. Evenyounghealthyadultscanbeaffectedbypoorqualityair.Theeyes,noseandthroatcanbecomeirritatedwhichthenleadstocoughing,tightnessofthechestandoftenshortnessofbreath. Figureshavebeentakenfrom3roadsidemonitoringstationandapatternhasbeenfoundthatrevealsveryhighconcentrationsoftraffic-derivedpollutants,namelynitrogendioxide(NO2).Thepatternsfollowbothdailyandweeklycycles.Seasonalchangesarealsonotedduethedirectionoftheprevailingwinds. ContainershipsarethelargestsourceofairpollutioninandaroundHongKong.Theyproducemostofthesulphurdioxide(SO2)nitrousoxidesandPM2.5particulatesthatarereleaseddailyintotheenvironment. HowcanHongKongimprovethequalityofitsair? TheEnvironmentalProtectionDepartment(EDP)wasestablishedtohelpfindasolutiontothepoorairqualityandtoassistintheprovisionoflong-termacceptablelevelsofcleanair. Acharitableorganisationknownas“CleantheAir“hasbeenestablishedwithagoalofimprovingtheairqualityinHongKong.Voluntaryphasingoutofolderdiesel-fuelledvehicleshasnotbeensuccessfulandfurtherstepsareneededtomakethishappenthroughnewrulesandregulations.Outofthe80,000governmentoperateddieselvehicles,76,000havealreadybeentakenoutofserviceandtheremaining4,000areexpectedtoberetiredwithinthenextyear.TheemissionsofPM2.5particulatesfrompowerstationsneedtobereduced.Withinthecomingyear,itishopedthatthecoal-firedpowerstationswillconverttotheuseofnaturalgas.Theuseofenergyinbothpublicandprivatebuildingsneedstobeaddressedwithenergysavingandefficientuseofpower.Whencarsarestoppedatjunctions,itisnowrequiredthattheenginesareturnedoffandnotleftidling.Anidlingengineproduceslargeamountsofpollutantwhichdischargeintotheimmediatearea.Thismandatewasintroducedinlate2007whichgavethepatrolsthepowertoimposeafixedpenaltyofHK$320fortheviolationoftheidlingrule.Itisnowillegalforanydrivertogetoutoftheirvehiclewhilsttheenginesisstillrunning.Thelawnowprohibitstheloiteringoftaxisandminibusesandtheyarenotencouragedtoloiterwhilstwaitingforclients.Mobilemonitoringstationsnearbusyjunctionsrecordthishugeincreaseinpollution.EngineIdlingPatrolshavebeenestablishedtoremindmotoriststoswitchtheirenginesoffwhilstwaiting.Marinevehiclesarenotexemptfromscrutinyeither,butmorestillneedstobedonetoestablishaCleanPortPolicyscheme.However,allvesselsmustusecompliantfuelwhilstdocked.Thelocalgovernmenthasbeenaskedtolicensealltobaccoretailersandtoincreasethetaxbywayofdiscouragingpeopletosmoke.TheiraimistoeducatethepublicinthefactthatsmokingcoststheHongKongeconomyinexcessof$70billionperannum. ThepromotionanduseofelectricvehicleswouldgreatlyincreasethequalityofairinHongKong.Already,theelectrificationofpublictransportisbeingencouragedandchargingstationsavailableforpublicusearebeinginstalledinstrategicplacesaroundthecity. Thereisanappdownloadabletomobilephones(PRAISE-HK)whichaimstoinformtheuserastothequalityofairintheirimmediatevicinity.Thisinformationwillallowthentomakeachoiceastowhethertoventureoutdoorsornot.Thisappalsopredictsthequalityofairforthenext48hoursbyusingdatamodellingandweatherforecasts.Itonlyusesdatathathasbeenverifiedbygovernmentofficialsandnotmerelyextractedfromsensors. WhataretheeffectsonhealthduetopoorairqualityinHongKong? AsaresultofcomprehensivestudiesinTheNetherlands,ithasbeennotedthatmortalityratesarenotablyhighernearheavilyusedroads.Thecomparisonwasmadebetweenresidentialproperties50metresand100metresawayfromthemainroad.ThisisofgreatsignificancetoresidentsofHongKongasthemajoritylivewithincloseproximityofmajorhighways.Ithasbeenstatedthatairpollutionexacerbatesasthma,raisestherisksofcardio-respiratorydeathsandgreatlyimpairsthefunctionofthelungs.Theserisksareincreasedby2to3percentforeveryriseof10µg/m³ofpollutants.TheseroadsidelevelsofpollutioninHongKongareblamedforthe90,000admissionstohospitalsandtheprematuredeathsofalmost3,000people. Evenhealthypeopleexperiencehealthimpactsduetobreathinginpollutedair.Simpleactivitiessuchasoutdooractivitiesandexercisearegreatlyaffected.Itisrecommendedthatgoodqualitymasksarewornwhenoutside,andiflivingincloseproximitytoaroad,itmaybeworthconsideringtheinstallationofanairpurifierinthehome.Highlevelsofairpollutioncancausesuchproblemsasaggravatedcardiovascularandrespiratoryillnesses.Theheartandlungsbecomeincreasinglystressedastheyneedtoworksomuchhardertokeepanadequatesupplyofoxygentotheblood.Cellsintherespiratorysystemeasilybecomepermanentlydamagedthroughbreathinginthesemicrofinepollutants. Overalongerperiodoftimeofexposure,thelungsprematurelyageandthuslosecapacityandsufferfromadecreaseinfunction.Diseasessuchasemphysema,asthma,bronchitisandevenlungcancerarecapableofdevelopingundersuchcircumstances.This,inturn,canleadtoashorterlife-span. Thosemostsusceptibletoseverehealthproblemsarethosewithexistingproblemswhichcouldincludecongestiveheartfailureorcoronaryarterydisease.Pregnantwomen,theelderlyandoutdoorworkersareparticularlyvulnerableasarechildrenunder14yearsandthosewhoengageinvigorousoutdoorexercise. Ithasbeenestimatedthat8,500peoplehavealreadylosttheirlivesin2020duetoairpollution.Ithasalsobeenresponsibleforanestimated6.8millionhomevisitsfromthedoctorand64,000hospital-days. Ondayswhentheairqualityisclassedasmoderate(51-100USAQI)residentsareencouragedtomakeuseofindoorfacilities,wherepossible.Eventakingawalkthroughalargeshoppingmallaspartofyourexerciseregimeisencouraged. DoesHongKong’spoorairqualityaffectitseconomy? Asearlyas2000therecordednegativeimpacttotheeconomywasinexcessofHK$11.1billion.Itisestimatedthat1,600deathscanbeavoidedifthequalityoftheairinHongKongisimproved.HavingbeenmadeawareofthesestatisticsitissaidthatpollutionisdrivingawaybusinessandisdetrimentaltoHongKong’sglobalcompetitiveness.Amongstotherthings,itisbeingcalledabusinessissueandapoliticalissue. OnelargeAmericaninvestmentandwealthmanagementcompanyhavedowngradedHongKongpropertycompaniesbecausetheyareconcernedaboutthequalityoftheair.TheheadoftheHongKongStockExchangehasbeenwarnedbyseverallargeforeigninvestmentcompaniesthatlocalairpollutionisscaringinvestorsaway.Becauseofthelongperiodsofpoorairqualityandthethreatthatposestohealth,manyinvestorsarelookingatalternatives,suchasSingapore. IthasbeenproventhattheairpollutionisnotonlyharmfultothehealthofitscitizensbutitisamajorfactorwhenforeignworkersthinkaboutrelocatingtoHongKong.TheDanishChamberofCommerceinHongKongstatedthatseveralofitspotentialnewemployeeshavedeclinedanofferofworkinthecitybecauseofthehealthrisksassociatedwithworkinginsuchapollutedenvironment.Severalyearsago,newrecruitsdidnotconsiderHongKongtobeanunhealthycity,onthecontrary,itwasthoughtofasamodernmetropoliswithcleanair.However,ithasbeenrecommendedbyaLondon-basedHRcompanythatinordertoattractnewemployeesfromabroad,localcompaniesshouldofferafurther10percentsalaryincreasebywayofa“hardship”allowancebecauseofthepoorairquality.Ithasalsobeennotedthatalmostonefifthofthepopulationhasatsometimeconsideredleavingthecity,citingpoorairqualityasthemainreason. HongKongairqualitydataattributionContributors3GovernmentHongkongGovernmentAirQualityHealthIndex17stationsEducationalInternationalCollegeHongKong1stationAnonymous2Anonymouscontributor2stationsDatasources3HongkongGovernmentAirQualityHealthIndexIQAirPurpleAirDatavalidatedandcalibratedbyIQAirWhereisthecleanestairqualityinHongKong?HongKongairpollutionbylocationDiscoveryBay63ShamShuiPoPoliceStation69Southern72Central74Central/Western75Eastern76KwaiChungPoliceStation77NorthPoint77KwunTong78MongKok78TapMunPolicePost78TseungKwanO78ShaTinGovernmentSecondarySchool82TaiPoGovernmentOfficesBuilding82TsuenWan82HomeAffairsDepartmentYuenLongPublicEnquiryServiceCenter87CausewayBay89TungChungHealthCentre96TuenMunPublicLibrary99InternationalCollegeHongKong102ConnectWithIQAirSignupforournewsletterEmailIQAirsitesusecookiestoimproveyouronlineexperienceanddeliveradvertisementstailoredtoyourinterests.Click“ICONSENT”belowifyouconsenttoouruseofcookiesforthesepurposes.Formoreinformationaboutourhowweusecookies,includinghowtomanageyourcookiesettings,pleasereviewourPrivacyPolicy.ICONSENT Thishourlyrankingincludes2HongKongSARcitieswithPM2.5AQI.Thishourlyrankingincludes20HongKongSARstationswithPM2.5AQI.