Turkey and Uzbekistan implement new strategies to combat air pollution

Turkey and Uzbekistan are adopting different regional strategies to reduce air pollution and improve public health.

Turkish shipbuilders are moving toward electrification to reduce emissions from maritime transport near densely populated coastlines. The Turkish Shipbuilders' Association says that smaller vessels like tugboats and ferries often operate inside cities, making them a primary concern for community health. Shipbuilders have already developed battery-powered tugboats that run on renewable energy.

An International Maritime Organization study found that electric or hybrid propulsion is technically feasible for all 67 ferry operations in the Sea of Marmara. However, Mehtap Karahalla Özdemir of the Turkish Shipbuilders' Association says the private sector needs a finance mechanism to overcome the high costs of new vessels and charging infrastructure. In Tashkent, Uzbekistan, the government is addressing pollution from heating, transport, and industry.

A World Bank assessment found that the city's annual average concentration of PM2.5 was more than six times the World Health Organization guideline. Heating contributes 28 per cent of these concentrations, while transport and industry contribute 16 per cent and 13 per cent, respectively. To combat these sources, UzAuto Motors Powertrain installed dry and wet scrubbers and bag filters to capture manufacturing pollutants.

Uzbekistan also launched a national Clean Air programme to reduce overall pollutant emissions by 10.5 per cent by 2030. UzHydromet and the National Committee on Ecology and Climate Change are expanding monitoring networks to better track air quality. The government has installed monitoring equipment at around 600 industrial enterprises. Scientists are now using this data to develop a system that predicts air quality in major cities several hours in advance.

These forecasts aim to help residents understand how air quality might change throughout the day.