S’pore Air Quality Improves Due To Covid-19 Outbreak, Even Before ‘Circuit Breaker’ Started

Singapore Air Quality Improves Due To Reduction In Traffic & Industrial Activities

As the number of Covid-19 cases increases in March, more and more workers were advised told to work from home and avoid heading out for non-essential activities.

While these guidelines brought about inconvenience for many of us, it has apparently resulted in some pretty good news — and we aren’t talking about the decrease in Covid-19 cases.

Turns out, the air quality level in Singapore has improved of late, mostly due to the reduction in “economic and social activities” caused by the Covid-19 outbreak.

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So if you found the skies to be clearer of late, you’re not wrong.

PSI determinants dropped even before ‘Circuit Breaker’

According to the National Environment Agency (NEA), the key pollutant levels in Singapore have improved even before the ‘Circuit Breaker’ kicked in on 7 Apr.

Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) – an air pollutant taken into consideration when measuring PSI – levels in late-March reportedly dropped from 27µg/m³ to 17µg/m³ compared last year.

NO₂ levels continued to drop when the ‘Circuit Breaker’ took effect, dropping further to an average of 13µg/m³, reports The Straits Times (ST).

Not as significant as the drop in late-March, but still noteworthy nonetheless.

Average levels of Carbon monoxide (CO) and sulphur dioxide (SO₂) – also included in PSI readings – have also decreased between 8-43%.

Air quality improvements due to reduced traffic and industrial activities

When approached by ST, NEA attributed this improvement in air quality to the reduced traffic and industrial activities that came with the Covid-19 outbreak.

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The oil refinery industry, cited by NEA as one of the key contributors of air pollutants here, has notably reduced output during this period.

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Unsurprisingly, this has led to a corresponding drop in air pollution in Singapore.

Due to the improvement in air quality, absolute readings for 4 pollutants here is now “within World Health Organisation air quality guidelines” — something our nation has not achieved for a long time.

That said, the air pollution levels are expected to return to normal once Covid-19 measures are eased.

For such improvements to be long-term, an expert interviewed by ST said it would require “revolutionary changes“, such as,

• Increased usage of electric vehicles
• Increased usage of renewable energy.

A glimpse into a cleaner world

So if you’ve found the skies to be clearer recently, now you know the reason why.

While the Covid-19 measures have caused us inconvenience, at least we can look forward to fresher air while working from home.

The improved air quality might be an unexpected side effect of the Covid-19 measures, but it is also a glimpse into what the world might be like if we adopt greener and environmentally-friendlier practices.

Featured image adapted from Facebook.