Human life, and quality of life, relies on good quality air – it’s the thing we can survive the least time without. But in striving for progress and prosperity, air quality is an often-overlooked compromise that is made to the detriment of our well-being. Industrialisation invariably leads to poorer quality air, from emissions from the cars and trucks used in our supply chains, to the use of energy sources like coal, oil, and natural gas from the manufacturing plants that produce our essential products.

Every developed or developing country relies to some extent on the industries that can cause these emissions – including Saudi Arabia. Sectors such as petrochemicals and fertilizer manufacturing are an important source of jobs and economic activity in Saudi Arabia, with the potential to drive socio-economic development and provide a wide range of benefits to Saudi citizens. Inevitably, then, we will face issues with decreased air quality, the more we develop as an economic powerhouse.

Air quality is measured with the Air Quality Index, or AQI. It tells you how polluted the air is on a scale of 0 to 500. An AQI of 100 or less is good; an AQI between 101 and 150 is considered moderate; and an AQI over 151 is unhealthy for sensitive groups, including children, the elderly, and those with respiratory conditions. An AQI over 200 is unhealthy. The index is based on measurements of ground-level ozone, particulate matter (including dust, smoke, soot, and ash), carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and lead.

So how do we keep Saudi Arabia’s air as clean and pure as it can be, without these pollutants tainting it? The National Industrial Development and Logistics Program aims to address some of the challenges that industrialisation invariably throws at us. The program includes a number of initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable development of the industrial sector, and helping the Kingdom move towards a more sustainable economy by facilitating investments in growth-oriented sectors and encouraging collaboration with the private sector.

Our team at Staterra is aligned with the Kingdom’s vision to reduce emissions, help protecting flora and fauna, and help reshaping sustainable urban and industrial greening.

We carry out numerous emission inventories, generating detailed project emission inventories to support the reporting and accounting of Green House Gases (GHG) and evaluating the possibility of reducing GHG emissions during the construction and operational phases.

Our GHG reporting include absolute emission: CO2, CH4, N2O, SF6, and their equivalents in CO2e, using the API Compendium of Greenhouse Gas Methodologies for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry (2009) as primary reference.

With new developments there will be new air quality challenges, but Staterra will always be at the forefront in tackling these emissions and ensuring that we remain a leader in air quality – and that leads, above all, to an improved quality of life.

We help you identify GHG emissions mitigation opportunities throughout your project’s lifecycle, through the carbon management hierarchy concept (avoid, reduce, replace or offset), and estimate these mitigation measures based on CO2e as stipulated in local and international standards such as SAEP-13. Contact us today, and get started with existing or future projects.

If you’re not familiar with terms related to air quality here follows a glossary.

Air quality advisories – These advisories are usually called when the Air Quality Index (or AQI) gets into the unhealthy ranges. Different air pollution control agencies call them at different levels.

Air Quality Index (AQI) – A nationally uniform index for reporting and forecasting daily air quality. It is used to report on the four most common ambient air pollutants that are regulated under the Clean Air Act: ground-level ozone, particle pollution (PM10 and PM2.5), carbon monoxide (CO), and sulfur dioxide (SO2). The AQI focuses on health effects that may be experienced within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air.

Carbon monoxide (CO) – A colorless, odorless gas that can be harmful when inhaled in large amounts. CO is released when something is burned. The greatest sources of CO to outdoor air are cars, trucks, and other vehicles or machinery that burn fossil fuels.

Coarse particles (also known as PM10-2.5) – Particles with diameters generally larger than 2.5 micrometers (µm) and smaller than, or equal to, 10 µm in diameter.

Fine particles (also known as PM2.5) – Particles that are generally 2.5 µm in diameter or smaller. This group of particles also encompasses ultrafine particles and nanoparticles which are generally classified as having diameters less than 0.1 µm.

HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter – A type of pleated mechanical air filter. It is an acronym for “high-efficiency particulate air [filter]” (as officially defined by the U.S. Dept. of Energy). This type of air filter can theoretically remove at least 99.97% of dust, pollen, mold, bacteria, and any airborne particles with a size of 0.3 microns (µm).

Hygroscopicity – The quality of absorbing or attracting moisture from the air.

Integrated Science Assessments (ISA) – Reports that represent concise evaluations and syntheses of the most policy-relevant science for reviewing the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). All Integrated Science Assessments are vetted through a rigorous peer review process, including review by the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee as well as the public. See EPA’s Integrated Scientific Assessments website for more information.

Inversion – An atmospheric condition where a layer of cooler air is trapped near the ground by a layer of warmer air above. When the air cannot rise, pollution at the surface also is trapped and can accumulate, leading to higher concentrations of ozone and particle pollution.

Ozone – Ground level ozone is not emitted directly into the air, but is created by chemical reactions between oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC). This happens when pollutants emitted by cars, power plants, industrial boilers, refineries, chemical plants, and other sources chemically react in the presence of sunlight. Ozone at ground level is a harmful air pollutant, because of its effects on people and the environment, and it is the main ingredient in “smog.”

Particle pollution (also known as particulate matter or PM) – General term for a mixture of solids and liquid droplets suspended in the air.

Primary fine particles – Fine particles that are emitted directly from a source, such as construction sites, unpaved roads, smokestacks, or fires.

Secondary fine particles – Fine particles that form in complicated reactions in the atmosphere of chemicals, such as sulfur dioxides and nitrogen oxides, that are emitted from power plants, industries, and automobiles.

Sensitive groups (also called at-risk populations) – A term used for a category of persons at increased risk of experiencing adverse health effects related to air pollution exposures. These groups can be at increased risk due to intrinsic factors (biological),  extrinsic factors (external, non-biological), higher exposure, and/or increased dose at a given concentration. The severity of the health effects that these groups experience may be much greater than in the general population.

Sulfur dioxide (SO2) – One of a group of gases called sulfur oxides (SOx). While all of these gases are harmful to human health and the environment, SO2 is of greater concern. The largest sources of SO2 emissions are from fossil fuel combustion at power plants and other industrial facilities.

Ultrafine particles (also known as PM0.1) – Particles that are generally classified as having diameters less than 0.1 µm.