‘New Year’s Day air pollution not as bad as past years’

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) yesterday said the air pollution level following the New Year Eve’s celebrations was not as bad as previous years.

The DENR’s Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) said the rains contributed to reducing particulate matters (PM) in the air which is made worse by firecrackers and fireworks during the New Year’s Eve revelry.

Teresita Peralta of the EMB said the presence of particulate matter 10 (PM-10) in Marikina City’s air was only 872 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m³) from midnight of Dec. 31, 2015 up to 1 a.m. of Jan. 1, 2016. It was at 1,988 µg/m³ last year.

In Las Piñas City, the PM-10 level was monitored at 540 µg/m³ while a year ago it went up to 2,000 µg/m³.

“Those that are used to lighting up huge firecrackers could have been discouraged because of the rains,” Peralta said.

She said cities in Metro Manila, such as Pasay and Malabon are among those that registered a relatively high PM level since many vehicles pass through these areas and the population is dense.

Particulate matter, also known as particle pollution, is a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets. Particle pollution is made up of a number of components, including acids (such as nitrates and sulfates), organic chemicals, metals and soil or dust particles.