The air pollution monitoring network for Egypt Bjarne Sivertsen and Ahmed Aboud El Seoud*, Norwegian Institute for Air Research (NILU), Kjeller, Norway, [email protected] www.nilu.no * Egypt Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA), Cairo, Egypt
The monitoring programme The air quality monitoring programme de- signed and established of the EEAA includes: • Data collectors; sensors and monitors • Data transfer systems and data quality assurance/control procedures • Data bases including data statistics and The Egyptian Environmental • Data reporting and distribution systems. Affairs Agency (EEAA) has been The Centre of Environmental Hazard supported by Danida to establish Mitigation (CEHM) at Cairo University an Environmental Information and and the Institute of Graduate Studies and Monitoring Programme (EIMP) Research (IGSR) at Alexandria University are for Egypt. Experts from the Nor- operating the sites and instruments on behalf of EEAA. wegian Institute for Air Research (NILU) were appointed responsible The network consists of: for the development of the national • 14 sites located in the Greater Cairo air quality monitoring programme. area, • 8 sites in Alexandria area, This programme consists presently • 7 sites in the Delta, of a total of 42 measurement sites • 3 sites in the Canal area and covering most of Egypt. • 10 sites in Upper Egypt and Sinai Statistical analyses and comparisons of ambient concentrations with national and Suspended dust international standards indicates that the main Suspended dust problem in Egypt is linked to suspended dust (measured as (TSP, PM10 and black smoke). Occasionally PM10 and TSP) we also record high levels of SO2, Ozone, CO is the major air and NO . pollution problem 2 in Egypt. Annual average concentrations of A large range of Ras Mohamed PM10 range be- Maadi PM concentra- Ismailia 10 tween 100 and 200 Max Port Said tions are found. µg/m3 in urban and Qulaly Minya PM10 in urban and Fum Khalig residential areas Nag Hammadi industrial areas fre- Edfu and between 200 Abbassya quently exceed 100 3 Nasr City and 500 µg/m near Kafr Dawar and 200 µg/m3. Assuyt industrial areas. Gomhorya Tabbin Kaha Daily average concentrations of more than 6 IGSR KafrZayat times the Air Quality Limit value for Egypt are Fayum Shoubra being recorded occasionally in the urban areas Tanta AbyZabel of Cairo. The natural background concentration Mahalla Kom Ombo of PM10 in Egypt has been evaluated to represent 0 100 200 300 400 500 levels close to or around the Air Quality Limit value of 70 µg/m3 as a daily average.
40 SO2 concentrations SO and NO Days above SO2 limit (N) 2 2 N exceeding the Egypt The concentration levels of SO and NO have 35 2 2 2000 air quality limit also been observed to exceed the Air Quality 2001 values occurs in the Limit values in industrial areas and during 30 2002 city centre of Cairo some occasions in the big cities. 25 and downwind from Both the long term (annual averages) and the 20 industrial areas. short-term (1-hour average) Air Quality Limit 15 levels have been exceeded. Eight-hour average CO concentrations in streets and along roads in 10 Cairo frequently exceeded the Air Quality Limit 5 value. During the 4 years of data collection we have seen a trend of improved air quality in the 0 city centre of Cairo. Shoubra Kolaly Gomhoreya Assyut Komombo ElKheima street
NILU PP 4/2004