Air Quality Management Initiatives for Kuala Lumpur: A study of stakeholder roles, emission sources, and vulnerable populations Dr. Scott Kennedy Energy & Environment Program Malaysia University of Science and Technology

Background in Malaysia Motor vehicles are primary aggravators of air quality (DOE, 2005) CO (98% from transport sector) NOx (59% from transport) Particulate Matter (31% from transport) SO2 (7% from transport) Hydrocarbons (major contributor) Rapid growth in automotive fleet Source: Road Transport Department Malaysia, 2003

Objectives of study Assess vehicular emissions loading at three urban hot-spots using CO as indicator, Survey population to infer the relative exposure, awareness, ability to avoid health risk of vulnerable populations, To investigate and identify the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders in AQM.

Annual Average PM10 concentration, 1996 – 2004 Source: DOE, 2004

Annual Average PM10 concentration by land use Source: DOE, 2004

Sample Kerbside PM10 Concentrations Malaysian Ambient Air Quality Guideline (24 hour average) Severe Haze Episode 24-hour average concentrations data near Kota Raya Station July 12 – Nov 27 (measurement every 6 days) Simultaneous CO and PM10 data not available Source: DOE, cited by Kee, 2006

Carbon Monoxide Monitoring Site location Time interval Duration of continuous monitoring Site 1 (Kota Raya) 30 seconds 27 April until 5 May 2006 Site 2 (Kerinchi) 31 May until 28 June 2006 Site 3 (Klang Bus Station) 28 June until 26 July 2006. Langan T15n enhanced CO measurer Kerbside ventilated metal box Human exposure height (1.6 to 1.8 meters).

Klang Bus Stand Kg. Kerinchi Kota Raya

CO Monitoring Kg. Kerinchi – Residential Area AQ guidelines: 9ppm (8-hour average) Exceedence: 14 days (48%) 30 second / 1-hour / 8-hour averaging 8-hour averages

CO Monitoring Average Daily Profile Average daily profile for all sites

Exposed Population Survey Sample: 275 respondents at 3 sites Data collected: Socioeconomic details; Duration of exposure; Perception of air pollution and health risks; Transportation options for the exposed population. Gender: Male (45%), Female (55%) Age: 20 – 30 yrs old (57%) Income: No income (46%), < RM 2,000/month (41%). Duration: Women (3.2 hr/week), Men (7.7 hr/week) Summary: Higher concern and higher certainty of negative health effects among women, highly educated and higher income respondents Results: Summary of Survey Preliminary survey for validating approach

Exposed Population Survey Results: Ability to Avoid Risk Men have more access to cars Priority of car use in households

Recommendations Low number of kerbside air quality monitoring stations in urban areas Limited knowledge of kerbside air quality Monitoring changes very difficult. No current work on speciation of particulate matter Evolution of particulates from transboundary or local origin to final deposition unknown. Limited technical expertise in dispersion modeling, especially at meso-scale Dominated by private consultants for EIA reports Frequently not available to the public. Emissions inventories need further refinement Accurate meso-scale modeling not possible. Vehicle emissions factors not yet developed for Malaysia Difficult to link CO to PM and other vehicle emissions.

Recommendations Few health and environmental damage assessments emphasize local emission sources Most focus on transboundary haze Heavy reliance on foreign technical assistance for integrated assessments of air pollution sources and air quality improvement options No dissemination of previous studies, minimal capacity building Inter-agency board/committee needs to coordinate future studies, build local expertise No agency taking responsibility for emissions from private vehicles Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board handles commercial vehicles Road Transport Department in the MoT not involved in AQM

Recommendations Implementation agencies view air quality management as responsibility of DOE and outside their domain Examples: CVLB, Road Transport Department, DBKL (not including Environment Dept.) and Ministry of Health. EPU experienced in inter-agency coordination and policy formulation but no staff dedicated to air quality management issues. NGO community in Malaysia not involved No strong advocate for improving dissemination of air quality information and assisting vulnerable populations in hot-spot pollution areas.

Proposed AQM supervisory body for Kuala Lumpur Metro Area Air Quality Management Board Policy development and option assessment Environmental agency: Air quality assessment Health agency: Environment and health damage assessment Urban, industrial and transport planning agencies: Implementation Research institutions: Research and development

References DOE (2005). Malaysia Environmental Quality Report 2004, Department of Environment. MOT, 2006. Transport Statistics, Ministry of Transport. Available: http://www.mot.gov.my/BM/stat/index.htm (October 2006). Kee W.F. (2006). “Micro-scale modeling of air pollutants from mobile sources: A case study in Kuala Lumpur City”, MSc Thesis, Malaysia University of Science and Technology.