XN000022-1992-01-17 — Page 12

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 1992

DECEMBER AIR QUALITY REPORT RELEASED

THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DEPARTMENT (EPD) TODAY (FRIDAY) RELEASED AIR QUALITY INFORMATION FOR DECEMBER LAST YEAR AS OBTAINED AT ITS MONG KOK, CENTRAL/WESTERN AND KWAI CHUNG AIR QUALITY MONITORING STATIONS.

THIS IS THE SIXTH MONTHLY ANNOUNCEMENT MADE BY THE DEPARTMENT. SIMILAR ANNOUNCEMENTS WILL BE MADE REGULARLY.

THE REPORTED AIR POLLUTANTS INCLUDE SULPHUR DIOXIDE (SO2) AND NITROGEN DIOXIDE (NO2) WHICH ARE MONITORED CONTINUOUSLY ROUND THE CLOCK, AND TOTAL SUSPENDED PARTICULATES (TSP) AND RESPIRABLE SUSPENDED PARTICULATES (RSP) WHICH ARE SAMPLED FOR 24 HOURS EVERY SIX DAYS.

THE GENERAL AIR QUALITY MEASURED AT THE THREE STATIONS WAS VERY MUCH SIMILAR TO THE LEVELS IN NOVEMBER, AND THERE WAS NO MEASUREMENT IN SO2, NO2, OR DUST LEVELS (TSP AND RSP) WHICH EXCEEDED THE RELEVANT DAILY OR HOURLY AIR QUALITY OBJECTIVES FOR THESE POLLUTANTS.

AN EPD SPOKESMAN SAID THE PURPOSE OF THE ANNOUNCEMENT IS TO MAKE THE PUBLIC MORE AWARE OF THE GENERAL AIR QUALITY LEVELS TO WHICH THEY MIGHT BE EXPOSED, AND OTHER FACTS AND ELEMENTS OF AIR POLLUTION.

THE REPORTED AIR POLLUTANTS MAINLY COME FROM COMBUSTION OF FUEL IN MOTOR VEHICLE ENGINES AND INDUSTRIAL PLANTS. TSP AND RSP ARE ALSO GENERATED BY CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES AND SOME MANUFACTURING PROCESSES.

RSP

THE DAILY HONG KONG AIR QUALITY OBJECTIVES OF S02, NO2, TSP AND ARE 350, 150, 260 AND 180 MICROGRAMMES PER CUBIC METRE RESPECTIVELY, AND THE RESPECTIVE ANNUAL OBJECTIVES ARE 80, 80, 80 AND 55 MICROGRAMMES PER CUBIC METRE.

COMMENTING ON THE AIR QUALITY MEASURED AT THE THREE STATIONS FOR THE WHOLE OF LAST YEAR, THE SPOKESMAN POINTED OUT THAT THE MONG KOK STATION RECORDED THE WORST AIR QUALITY LEVELS.

THIS STATION IS INTENDED TO REPRESENT THE GENERAL AIR QUALITY AT LOCATIONS CLOSE TO HEAVY ROAD TRAFFIC IN BUILT-UP URBAN DISTRICTS.

COMMISSIONED IN APRIL LAST YEAR, THE MONG RECORDED BY DECEMBER, TWO MEASUREMENTS OF NO2 WHICH AIR QUALITY OBJECTIVE.

KOK STATION HAD EXCEEDED THE DAILY

THE OVERALL AVERAGE TSP AND RSP LEVELS AT THE STATION WERE MEASURED AT RESPECTIVELY 109 AND 59 MICROGRAMMES PER CUBIC METRE, WHICH ALSO EXCEEDED THE RELEVANT ANNUAL AIR QUALITY OBJECTIVES FOR THESE POLLUTANTS.

OF THE THREE STATIONS, MONG KOK ALSO RECORDED THE HIGHEST AVERAGE S02 LEVEL, ALTHOUGH AT 49 MICROGRAMMES PER CUBIC METRE THE ANNUAL AIR QUALITY OBJECTIVE WAS NOT EXCEEDED.

/THE AIR