JICA Grant Will Help Study Emissions in Tehran

A memorandum of understanding was signed on Monday between Tehran Air Quality Control Company, a subsidiary of Tehran Municipality, and Japan International Cooperation Agency on supplying the equipment for the measurement and analysis of emissions in the capital.  

The ceremony was attended by Japan's Ambassador to Iran Hiroyasu Kobayashi, head of JICA office in Tehran Yukiharu Kobayashi, Deputy Mayor for Transport Affairs Mohsen Pourseyed Aqaei, and AQCC's Managing Director Vahid Hosseini. 

Based on the contract, JICA has agreed to provide $11.3 million worth of technical equipment for Iran in the form of grant aid. 

The instruments are expected to be imported and become fully operational within a three-year time frame. 

According to Hosseini, the very first diesel emission laboratory at Euro 6 level for diesel engines installed on buses, minibuses, and trucks will be launched as part of the agreement. 

"I hope that with access to these instruments, diesel emissions can be analyzed in a precise and scientific manner," he said. 

Besides, portable emission measurement systems will be supplied for vehicles that run on gasoline and CNG. 

A chemical analysis laboratory outfitted with high-tech devices such as advanced microscopes will be established within the set period.   

"Toxic chemicals have low concentrations but are very harmful to health, so we need [to use] instruments that are capable of carrying out precise measurement. This hasn't been done previously in Iran," the official said. 

Major Upgrade 

Under the scheme, Tehran will also receive seven new air quality monitoring stations to replace old instruments that have been in place for the last 15 years. "This is a major upgrade to the air quality control network." 

This is one of JICA's two projects on the detailed study of air pollutants in Tehran, the first of which, involving technical and financial assistance to identify and classify emission sources, started last September. 

The two projects will progress in tandem, providing the authorities with both the technical equipment and know-how to address the persistent and seemingly intractable challenge of air pollution gripping the capital.