Air Quality Index was “good” on only four days in the fiscal 2022-23 (ended March 20, 2023), charts published by Tehran Air Quality Control Company’s website, Airnow.tehran.ir, show.
The company said 192 days turned out to be moderate, 132 days remained unhealthy for sensitive groups, two days remained unhealthy and another two were hazardous.
The index categorizes air conditions according to a measure of polluting matters into good (0-50), moderate (51-100), unhealthy for sensitive groups (101-150), unhealthy (151-200), very unhealthy (201-300) and hazardous (301-500).
TAQCC indicates that AQI hit “good” quality on six days in the first month of the current fiscal year (March 21-April 20).
Statistics show that the “moderate” status was recorded on 28 days, as AQI hovered between 51 and 100 during the period.
Sensitive groups in Tehran, who suffer the most from toxic air, were advised to limit outdoor activities for only a day, since AQI hovered between 101 and 150, marking an unhealthy status.
Children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with respiratory and cardiovascular problems are all categorized in the sensitive group.
AQI did not hit “unhealthy”, “very unhealthy”, or “hazardous” quality during the month under review
High density of PM2.5 (particulate matters smaller than 2.5 micrometers) and PM10 were the main culprits behind the polluted days.
Comparative Data
Month-on-month comparisons showed Tehran’s air was much healthier in the first month of the current fiscal year compared with the 12th month of the previous fiscal (Feb. 20-March 20).
Charts illustrate that the “good” status was recorded on only one day in the month ending March 20, as air remained “unhealthy for sensitive groups” during the period, with the index remaining between 101 and 150 on eight days.
Air quality was moderate on 21 days, as AQI hovered between 51 and 100 in the month.
The AQI review during the year-ago month shows air quality in Tehran has slightly improved.
In the first month of fiscal 2022-23 (March 21-April 20), moderate air quality condition was registered on 22 days, but the index remained increasingly unhealthy for the sensitive group on six days, compelling authorities to dissuade people from going outdoors unnecessarily.
Unhealthy air quality was registered for a day, as AQI remained between 151-200.
AQI hovered around 301-500 to register the hazardous quality for one day.
Tehran’s air quality deteriorated in the fiscal 2022-23 when compared with the year before.
The air quality was good for only two days in fiscal 2021-22, as AQI hovered around 0-50.
The moderate air quality status was registered for 250 days as AQI remained between 51 and 100.
Sensitive groups in Tehran were advised to stay indoors for 108 days as AQI hovered between 101 and 150, and air quality was unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Also, six days turned out to be moderate during the year, with AQI hovering around 151-200.
Similar to the fiscal 2022-23, high density of PM2.5 and PM10 were the main culprits behind the polluted air in the fiscal 2021-22.
More Vehicles Visit Technical Inspection Centers in Norouz Holidays
Worn-out cars or faulty vehicles can be considered one of the main causes of air pollution in Iran. Technical inspection centers can help prevent these vehicles from polluting the air, as all of the vehicles must pass this test to be considered roadworthy.
These centers either find the problem of the car and force the owner to fix the problem in order to pass the test, or announce that the worn-out car must be scrapped and cannot be used anymore.
The Norouz (Iranian New Year) holidays (March 16-April 2) became a good excuse for car owners to visit these centers. More vehicles flocked to technical inspection centers during the current Norouz holidays compared with the previous fiscal year’s, according to the director for executive affairs of Iran’s Car Technical Inspection Centers.
“At the start of the Norouz holidays, a total of 415,832 cars visited technical inspection centers across the country, registering an 11% growth compared with last year’s corresponding period,” Abdollah Tavakkoli was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
The official noted that from the total number of cars that visited the technical inspection centers, 333,662 cars managed to pass the technical examinations while 77,881 cars failed the tests.
“From the total number of cars that could not pass technical inspections, 39,593 cars could not get the required score due to defects in their safety systems and 38,288 vehicles were faulted over their high pollution,” he said.
However, when the defects are addressed, cars could again undergo these tests.
Tavakkoli noted that technical inspection was 88% effective in fixing the defects of cars.
“A total of 66,463 vehicles succeeded in obtaining a technical inspection certificate after removing the defect and returning to the same center,” he added.
According to the official, technical inspection centers located in Tehran, Khorasan Razavi and Isfahan provinces registered the highest number of referrals and those located in Kohgilouyeh-Boyerahmad, Bushehr and Ilam had the lowest number.
Statistics announced by the Iranian Traffic Police Department show car technical defects were behind 50% of the country's accidents, which confirm the importance of car technical inspection in preventing financial losses and fatalities for car owners and passengers.
The latest report on the total number of referrals to technical inspection centers pertains to the first 11 months of the previous fiscal year (March 21, 2022-Feb. 19).
According to this report, a total of 1.18 million light vehicles (up 6%) visited the technical inspection centers during the 11 months and 371,687 light vehicles (up 1%) revisited the centers during the same period. In total, 1.55 million light vehicles visited the centers, which were 5% higher compared with 1.48 million in the corresponding period of last year.
A total of 379 motorcycles also underwent technical tests during the period.
