Hanoi (VNA) – Hanoi will roll out action programmes andplans to improve air quality in the city based on the outcomes of aFrench-funded air quality assessment project, said a municipal leader.

Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung made the statement ata reception for French Ambassador to Vietnam Bertrand Lortholary, Director ofAirparif Frederic Bouvier, and Director of the French DevelopmentAgency (AFD) in Vietnam Fabrice Richy in Hanoi on October 17.

During the meeting, the two sides reviewed the one-year-old project,under which air monitoring stations were set up in Hanoi.

Chungcalled on Airparif, an agency in charge of monitoring air quality in Ile-de-France, to improve the qualityof the monitoring stations, while publicising air quality assessments.

In September, GreenInnovation and Development Centre (GreenID), a Hanoi-based NGO, released a report on air quality in Vietnam in the first half of this year.It compared air quality in 2017’s first sixmonths and in the same period of 2016.

Based on the report, from January to June, Hanoisuffered 139 days of excessive PM2.5 level, according to internationalstandards.

PM, or particulate matter, is a mixture of solidparticles and liquid droplets in the air. PM2.5 particulates are about athirtieth as thick as the width of a human hair and can pass through lungtissue and into the blood, harming human health.

The data showed no relation between theconcentration of pollutants and peak traffic hours, meaning air quality hasbeen affected by different pollution sources, notably the energy industry.

Nguyen Thi Anh Thu, GreenID’s environmentexpert, said that though the air quality has improved, millions of Hanoians rarelyenjoyed fresh air.

TheHanoi People’s Committee in January launched an online service with informationabout weather conditions and environment indexes, including air quality index,rainfall and flooding.-VNA