Tag: UNEP

Nations re-affirm their engagement to improve air quality globally through a new resolution at UNEA-6

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

Bangkok, 28 March 2024

The 6th edition of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) took place from 26 February to 1 March 2024, at the UNEP headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, gathering over 6,000 delegates. The Assembly adopted 15 resolutions, including a resolution on Promoting Regional Cooperation on Air Pollution to Improve Air Quality Globally.

.

What is UNEA?

The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) was created in 2012, as an outcome of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20). UNEA is the world’s highest-level decision-making body for matters related to the environment. Usually held every two years, the Assembly includes the universal membership of 193 Member States. It sets the global environment agenda, provides policy responses to environmental challenges, and provides strategic guidance on the future direction of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. UNEA has adopted many important resolutions over the years, including a resolution in 2022 that called for a legally binding international instrument to end plastic pollution.

.

UNEP video “The world is in Nairobi – day one at #UNEA6″

 .

Taking Action to Fight Air Pollution

Recognizing that air pollution is a major threat to the environment and to human health, with more than 7 million people dying prematurely due to air pollution every year, Member States adopted a resolution 1/7 on strengthening the role of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in promoting air quality at UNEA-1 in 2014. A second resolution was adopted at UNEA-3 in December 2017 on Preventing and reducing air pollution to improve air quality globally. Following the adoption of these two resolutions, UNEP implemented numerous activities creating awareness, building capacity and partnerships. These included strengthening cooperation with existing regional and global initiatives such as the EANET, as mentioned specifically in resolution 1/7.

.

UNEA’s Third Resolution on Air Quality

At UNEA-6, Member States adopted 15 resolutions aiming to tackle the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste, including the resolution on Promoting Regional Cooperation on Air Pollution to Improve Air Quality Globally.

This new resolution builds on Resolutions 1/7 and 3/8 and encourages Member States to continue their efforts to improve air quality by working on national air quality programmes and standards, bearing in mind the WHO global air quality guidelines. In addition, Member States requested UNEP’s Executive Director to form an air quality cooperation network to work with governments, UN organizations, multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), international and regional initiatives, including the EANET. This network’s tasks will include raising awareness on air pollution’s impacts and the importance of mitigation actions, supporting capacity building, and encouraging collaboration with Member States with advanced air quality management capabilities to enhance national monitoring using low-cost sensors, satellite data, and other digital solutions, sharing knowledge, facilitating expertise exchange including on nitrogen management, and regional air quality programs, and building an updated global online platform for information-sharing and communication on air quality.

.

How the EANET can contribute to the implementation of this resolution

Just as in Resolution 1.7, this latest Resolution directly references the EANET and its role alongside various other key regional air quality initiatives: “Acknowledging the progress achieved by existing bodies and initiatives that facilitate cooperation on in-country and transboundary air pollution, including the UNECE Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (…) and the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia”.

The EANET, as a robust regional intergovernmental body with standardized monitoring methodologies, already significantly contributes to UNEA Resolutions 1/7 and 3/8 on air quality. Since 2001, the network has developed open access high-quality datasets through centralized and government-approved data collection, publishes Periodic Reports on Acid Deposition in East Asia, leads joint research projects, offers capacity-building activities to enhance its Participating Countries’ technical capabilities, raises public awareness and strengthens cooperation with regional and global initiatives.

The EANET coordinates with other global and regional networks and initiatives to promote cooperation. In May-June 2024, the EANET, together with UNEP and ESCAP, are organizing the Workshop “Unlocking and Future-Proofing Air Quality Management in Asia”. The Workshop will provide a venue for EANET National Focal Points to discuss the future direction of its network and inputs for the development of its next Medium Term Plan for 2026-2030.

.

Photo credits: UNEA-6, the Opening plenary of the MEA day, 28 February 2024, ©UNEP / Francis Kiguta on Flickr.

Sustainable Nitrogen Management Seminar: Experts Convene to Address Global Challenges

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

nitrogen seminar

Bangkok, 23 February 2024

As a pre-seminar to UNEA-6, the Sustainable Nitrogen Management Seminar, addressed the significant yet underrepresented issue of nitrogen management in Asia and globally, and provided a platform for EANET Participating Countries to enhance their understanding of the nitrogen challenge. Organized virtually by EANET, with the support of the Ministry of the Environment, Japan, through the EANET Project Fund, the Seminar gathered around 100 participants. It aimed to explore strategies for sustainable nitrogen management through experts’ lectures and discuss the accumulation of nitrogen data within the EANET framework.

The seminar, facilitated by Ms. Aurélia Lemoine (Session 1) and by Bert Fabian (Session 2) from the Secretariat for the EANET, hosted by UNEP, started with an opening address by Mr. Yu Kamei, Director for International Cooperation at the Ministry of the Environment, Japan.

.

Global Trends and Insights

Dr. Ning Liu,  Programme Management Officer, Source to Sea Pollution Unit, UNEP, presented updates on the UNEP Working Group on Nitrogen, highlighting the importance of collaborative efforts in addressing nitrogen-related challenges. Prof. Kentaro Hayashi, Professor, at the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature, Japan emphasized the interconnectedness of nitrogen issues with the atmosphere and the overall narrative surrounding nitrogen management.

Dr. Wilfried Winiwarter, a Senior Research Scholar from the Pollution Management Research Group, Energy, Climate, and Environment at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Austria, presented the use of nitrogen budgets for sustainable management, highlighting comprehensive approaches to tackle nitrogen-related issues. Dr. Kazuya Nishina, a Senior Researcher at the Earth System Division (Biogeochemical Cycle Modeling and Analysis Section), from the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES),  introduced the Japan Nitrogen Waste project, underlining the importance of national inventories in understanding nitrogen dynamics.

.

EANET’s Role in Nitrogen Management

Dr. Hiroyuki Sase, Head of the Ecological Impact Research Department, ACAP, presented the potential of EANET in contributing to sustainable nitrogen management, emphasizing the importance of monitoring nitrogen cycles comprehensively. Dr. Le Ngoc Cau, Deputy Director General, Viet Nam Institute of Meteorology, Hydrology and Climate Change (IMHEN), Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Viet Nam, highlighted efforts in Viet Nam to identify and control nitrate pollution in water bodies, reflecting the global significance of nitrogen management.

The seminar featured Q&A sessions, where participants raised questions regarding the implications of ammonia as a new fuel and the role of nitrogen in European farming practices. Discussions revolved around the need for enhanced collaboration and the significance of localized approaches in nitrogen management strategies.

.

Moving Forward

Wrapping up Part I, Prof. Hayashi emphasized the pivotal role of EANET in addressing atmospheric aspects of nitrogen management, stressing its direct and indirect contributions to sustainable practices. Dr. Sase concluded Part II by highlighting EANET’s extensive data accumulation efforts, emphasizing its potential to understand nitrogen flows comprehensively. Experts reiterated the importance of EANET’s role in nitrogen management, emphasizing the need for continued collaboration and data-driven approaches.

.

Find out more about the EANET Project Fund

.

Useful Resources

Panelists’ Presentations

1. Update on UNEP Working Group on Nitrogen by Mr. Liu

2. The overall story about the nitrogen issue connected to the atmosphere by Prof. Hayashi

3. Using nitrogen budgets for sustainable nitrogen management by Dr. Winiwarter

4. The Potential of EANET to Contribute to Sustainable Nitrogen Management by Dr. Sase

.

Photo credits: featured photo by Dr. Mingqun Huo, all rights reserved.

Kick-off Meeting – Stocktaking and Methodological Assessment of Emissions Inventories and Source Apportionment of Air Pollution in Southeast Asia

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

Emissions inventories kick-off meeting

1. Background

EANET is working to reduce acid deposition and air pollution in Northeast and Southeast Asia. It is an intergovernmental initiative established in 2001 including 13 Participating Countries initially focused on acid deposition. In 2021, EANET expanded its scope to cover broader air pollution issues and established a Project Fund mechanism to promote cooperation with other organizations outside of EANET.

EANET’s activities are guided by its five-year Medium-Term Plans and a detailed Work Programme and Budget including projects, approved by the Participating Countries every year. A project called “Stocktaking and Methodological Assessment of Emissions Inventories and Source Apportionment of Air Pollution in Southeast Asia” has been approved for implementation in 2024, at the Twenty-fifth Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting (IG25) on the EANET, as a Project Activity, funded by the EANET Project Fund and implemented in partnership with the Asian Institute of Technology, Regional Resource for Asia Pacific (RRC.AP/AIT).

.

2. Objectives

Emissions inventories and source apportionment of air pollution are fundamental elements of an air quality management framework. They enable policymakers, government regulators, and experts to better understand the sources of air pollution and their contribution to ambient air quality and identify appropriate policies. Many emissions inventory and source apportionment studies have been conducted in the EANET region.

This project aims to collate and analyze relevant key studies based on research and consultations with EANET National Focal Points and make these studies available as a database on the EANET website. The project will also identify follow-up opportunities and projects to work emissions inventories and/or source apportionment in the region.

An inception meeting of the project will be organized on Tuesday 26 March 2024 at the UN Conference Center (UNCC), meeting room B,  in Bangkok, Thailand. The objective of the meeting is to better understand the emissions inventory/ source apportionment situation in Southeast Asia and discuss with potential project partners the detailed activities to be carried out in the project. Participation in this meeting is by invitation only.

.

2. Draft Agenda (updated on 22 MAR)
.

.

Find out more about the EANET Project Activities on the EANET Project Fund page, and contact the Secretariat for the EANET for more information on the Emissions Inventories project.

The Twenty-fifth Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting on the EANET

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

30 November 2023 – Hanoi, Viet Nam

The Twenty-fifth Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting on the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET) (IG25) took place from 29 to 30 November 2023, in Hanoi, Viet Nam and online. Over 70 representatives from the EANET Participating Countries, UNEP and ACAP, the Secretariat and Network Center for the EANET, participated in the discussions related to the network’s 2024 activities and to address air quality issues in the region.

.

Regional Cooperation Fighting Acid Deposition and Air Pollution

Hosted and chaired by Viet Nam, the IG25 started with the Welcome Remarks by His Excellency Mr. Le Cong Thanh, Vice Minister, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE), followed by opening Remarks by Ms. Marlene Nielsson, Deputy Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, UNEP, and by Dr. Hatakeyama, Director General, Asia Center for Air Pollution Research (ACAP).

His Excellency Mr. Le Cong Thanh delivering the Opening Remarks.

His Excellency Mr. Le Cong Thanh emphasized the significant challenges of air pollution and acid deposition in Viet Nam and globally. He highlighted the efforts of MONRE in developing legal frameworks and a nationwide monitoring network and expressed appreciation for the EANET’s contributions over the past twenty years. Ms. Nilsson underscored the significance of multilateralism in tackling environmental challenges, particularly acid deposition and air pollution, highlighting EANET’s expanded role in policy actions and capacity building for improved air quality. Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama highlighted the successful outcomes of the expansion of scope and the Project Fund adopted two years ago, specifically citing the Hybrid Air Quality Monitoring Network (HAQMN) project’s positive results with Low-Cost Sensors (LCS).

The IG25 Session was chaired by Viet Nam, vice-chaired by Lao PDR and Cambodia, and Thailand was elected Rapporteur.

.

Over US$600,000 allocated to Building Government Capacity and Addressing Air Quality Management Issues in the Region

In addition to the Core Budget of the EANET to support its activities focused on monitoring, and supporting its meetings, the IG25 approved eleven EANET Projects in 2024 primarily focusing on capacity building for government officials but also concerning key air quality management-related issues such as on Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), low-cost sensors (LCS), emissions inventories, and source apportionment projects in the region.

The EANET Projects for 2024 received funding through the EANET Project Fund, EANET’s financial mechanism allowing collaboration with implementation partners and co-financing from outside the EANET Network.

The total funding for Project Activities in 2024 is $605,000, including funding from the EANET Secretariat and NC funds, additional financial support from Japan (MOEJ), and from the Republic of Korea (NIER).

.

Ways forward

In addition to these key decisions, the IG25 also approved several important documents, such as the Work Program and Budget of the EANET in 2024, including the organization of key meetings in 2024 such as the Working Group Meeting in 2024 (WG2024), the 24th Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC24) and the 26th Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting on the EANET (IG26), and the process to finalize the revision of the EANET’s Administrative and Financial Guidelines and of the EANET Project Fund and Project Guideline.

 .

Read the Report of IG25 and discover the meeting’s pictures on Flickr.

.

Photos credits: all rights reserved to EANET.

EANET joins forces in Mongolia with regional and global partners to fight air pollution at the High-Level Forum on Clean Air

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

9 March 2023 – Bangkok, Thailand

EANET, as one of the existing intergovernmental bodies in Asia, collaborated in the organization of the High-Level Forum on Clean Air, alongside the Ministry of Environment and Tourism of Mongolia, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asian and the Pacific (ESCAP), and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia from 2 to 3 March 2023. The Forum supported the operationalization of ESCAP’s recently adopted Asia-Pacific Regional Action Programme on Air Pollution (RAPAP).

.

The High-Level Forum on Clean Air

The Forum gathered around 100 participants including high-level representatives from governments, national experts, researchers, and representatives from regional organizations working on air pollution.

Among key high-level representatives, H.E. Mr. Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai, Prime Minister of Mongolia; H.E. Mr. Naseer Ahamed, Minister of Environment of Sri Lanka; Ms. Armida Alisjahbana, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP, and Ms. Dechen Tsering, Regional Director, Asia and the Pacific Office, UN Environment Programme, joined the hybrid event.

Watch the Opening Session

.

The Forum aimed at presenting and discussing the implementation of the Asia-Pacific Regional Action Programme on Air Pollution (RAPAP), adopted at the 7th session of the ESCAP Committee on Environment and Development in 2022. Various sessions were organized, including a ministerial roundtable, sessions on air quality management, monitoring, best practices, capacity building, air quality data and standards, and partnerships through the RAPAP.

Stakeholders from a wide variety of countries, from Asia and beyond, organizations, and sectors shared their experience in actively leading air pollution-related actions, showing the abundance of expertise in the domain.

.

Sharing EANET’s Long-term Expertise in Air-quality Monitoring and Capacity Building

The EANET, as a key regional intergovernmental organization for East Asia, along with the North-East Asia Clean Air Partnership (NEACAP), was invited to share its expertise in several sessions.

Prof. Meng Fan, Deputy Director-General of the Network Center for the EANET, shared EANET’s two decades of experience during Session 2: Air Quality Monitoring Session. He highlighted the trends of air pollution and acid deposition in the EANET region, including the decrease of sulphur dioxide over time, and the increase of ozone, in Southeast Asia specifically. He also explained the impacts of acidification in forests and inland waters in the region.

Watch Prof. Meng’s presentation (at 35’06’’)

.

Mr. Bert Fabian, the Coordinator of the Secretariat for the EANET, was invited as a panelist in Session 3: Best Practice Sharing and Capacity Building. In his presentation, he explained the role of EANET in strengthening the data-science-policy link over the past two decades, highlighting the capacity-building and training activities achieved by the Network, and presented the new Project Activities in 2023. He called for increased cooperation amongst various partners in support of Project activities in 2024.

Mr. Kwon-Ho Jeon, a Senior coordinator at the National Institute of Environmental Research (NIER), Republic of Korea, presented NIER’s training activities particularly on the upcoming TNT and Capacity Building Program in 2023, a partnership between NIER and EANET.

Watch Mr. Fabian’s and Mr. Jeon’s presentations (at 4’20’’ and 11’53’’)

.

The High-Level Forum offered a meeting point for many organizations and government representatives. Several stakeholders mentioned ongoing participation in the EANET, such as Ms. Uranchimeg Tserendorj the Director-General of the Natural Resources Policy Coordination Department from the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Mongolia, and Undersecretary Juan Miguel Cuna of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Philippines.

EANET will explore opportunities to cooperate amongst various partners to complement the implementation of the RAPAP. EANET will continue to play a key role in Northeast and Southeast Asia in air quality and acid deposition management.

.

Interested in finding out more about EANET’s monitoring activities and findings? Read the Fourth Periodic Report on the State of Acid Deposition in East Asia (PRSAD4).

.

Photo credits: Ulaanbaatar by duku photography, free of rights, all videos: all rights reserved to Orgil Media.

EANET Seminar: Learnings on Reducing Emissions from Open Burning

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

7 September 2022 – Niigata, Japan

The Network Center for the EANET organized the Seminar « Learnings on Reducing Emissions from Open Burning » in a hybrid format, in Suwon, Republic of Korea, and online, on 6 September 2022, with the Asia Pacific Clean Air Partnership (APCAP) (UNEP) and the Institute for Global Environmental Strategy (IGES) as co-organizers. The Seminar focused on good practices to reduce emissions from open burning and presented sustainable alternatives to improve air quality in the region. 144 participants from 17 countries from the Asian region and beyond joined the Seminar.

.

Opening Session

Moderated by Ms. Maria Katherina Patdu, Associate Programme Officer – Asia Pacific Clean Air Partnership (APCAP) (UNEP), the Seminar started with the Opening and Welcome Remarks by Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama, Director General of the Asia Center for Air Pollution Research (ACAP) in charge of the NC for the EANET, and by Dr. Mushtaq Memon, Regional Coordinator for Chemicals and Pollution Action Subprogramme, UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Dr. Memon also co-moderated the second part of the Seminar.

.

Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama and Dr. Mushtaq Memon delivered the opening remarks.

.

Remarks emphasized the new role of the EANET with the expansion of its scope from acid deposition to air pollution (including PM2.5), and the technical and financial challenges leading to open burning practices in the region.

.

Open Biomass Burning and Regional Challenges

Dr. Supat Wangwongwatana, a Senior Instructor of the Faculty of Public Health, at Thammasat University, Thailand, presented the various causes of open burning in Thailand, with a particular focus on Northern Thailand’s situation and showed the direct impacts on air quality, the environment, and public health. In his presentation, he highlighted the challenges and needs for more government-driven incentives, policies, technical assistance, and education toward non-burning agricultural practices.

.

Panelists during the Seminar. From left to right: Ms. Maria Katherina Patdu, Dr. Supat Wangwongwatana, Ms. Etwin Sabarini, Dr. Eric Zusman, Dr. Alison Simcox, and Ms. Azka Ghaida.

.

Sharing Good Practices to Reduce Open Burning

Ms. Etwin Sabarini, Programme Coordinator, Measurable Action for Haze-Free Sustainable Land Management in Southeast Asia (MAHFSA), ASEAN Secretariat introduced the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution. She explained the history, objective, and framework of the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution and focused her talk on the ASEAN Peatland Management Strategy (APMS) initiative aiming at conserving peatlands, the largest carbon store in the ASEAN region.

Ms. Do Van Nguyet, Director at Live & Learn for Environment and Community, then shared examples of good practices from Viet Nam, including their collective action to control open burning in Hanoi. These included: policy development, monitoring, and technical assistance with a special focus on multi-stakeholder engagement.

Dr. Eric Zusman, a Senior Policy Researcher and Area Leader at the Institute for Global Environmental Strategy (IGES), presented priority actions in Southeast Asia to reduce open burning, and possible solutions, while analyzing barriers to their implementation based on the example of Thailand. To deal with these barriers, he explained the polycentric system approach, where different governing authorities may organize themselves in non-hierarchical relationships, and he emphasized the need to mix solutions of alternatives to open burning.

Dr. Alison Simcox, from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA), shared an overview of agricultural burning and smoke management in the USA. After explaining the history of agricultural burning practices, she detailed the recent changes in practices and the role of the Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) focusing on the Smoke Management Program (SMP) and on alternatives to burning in the USA, such as no-till farming.

Dr. Ken Yamashita summarized the Seminar.

Ms. Azka Ghaida, an Air Quality and Climate Research Analyst at the World Resources Institute (WRI) in Indonesia, presented the use case of crop residue open burning in Indonesia by explaining the cause of the phenomenon, the government’s action, the barriers, and the solutions such as education and community involvement, sustainable farming and farm management practices.

Dr. Ken Yamashita who is Head of the Planning and Training Department at the Network Center for the EANET (ACAP) thanked all panelists and participants and summarized the Seminar by highlighting the key points of the challenges such as technical, financial limitations but also cultural barriers, and opportunities including mixed alternatives and operating in polycentric governance systems, to reduce open burning practices from ASEAN, Thailand, Indonesia, Viet Nam, and the USA.

.

Useful Resources

.

For further inquiries, contact the Network Center for the EANET.

.

Photo credits: featured photo of Mù Cang Chai, Mù Cang Chai District, Yên Bái, Viet Nam (2020) by Hoach Le Dinh on Unsplash, other photos: all rights reserved to the EANET.

EANET Seminar on Expanding Monitoring Systems using LCS

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

23 August 2022 – Niigata, Japan

The Network Center for the EANET organized the Seminar on Expanding Monitoring Systems using Low-Cost Sensor (LCS) online on 21 July 2022. It gathered representatives, experts, and practitioners of air quality monitoring from the EANET Participating Countries, and other participants from international organizations, academia, and monitoring-related service providers. 127 participants joined the Seminar.

 .

Opening Session

The Seminar started with the Opening and Welcome Remarks by Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama, Director General of the Asia Center for Air Pollution Research (ACAP) in charge of the NC for the EANET, and by Dr. Mushtaq Memon, Regional Coordinator for Chemicals and Pollution Action Subprogramme, UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Remarks were followed by an Introductory Presentation by Mr. Taku Ohmura from the Overseas Environmental Cooperation Center, Japan (OECC) on the Overview of issues and opportunities of using LCS for air quality administrations and surveys.

.

Understanding Challenges and Opportunities of LCS

Key presentations by Dr. Supat Wangwongwatana, a Senior Instructor of the Faculty of Public Health, at Thammasat University, Thailand, and by Dr. Alison Simcox from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA), delved into the limitations and opportunities of Low-cost sensor technology (LCS) for measuring air quality in the contexts of Thailand and of the United States.

Dr. Keiichi SATO, Head of the Atmospheric Research Department at ACAP, in charge of the NC for the EANET, then introduced the results of a survey on a Hybrid Air Quality Monitoring Network (HAQMN) and related technical studies in five EANET countries, namely Japan, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam.

His presentation was followed by discussions and presentations by Ms. Karma Yangzom, a Principal Environment Specialist from the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department, at the Asian Development Bank (ADB), on ADB’s experience with LCS as part of the Technical Assistance (TA) 9608 on “Strengthening Knowledge and Actions for Air Quality Improvement”, and by Ms. Maria-Katharina Patdu’s presentation, an Associate Programme Officer, from the Asia Pacific Clean Air Partnership (APCAP), at UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, on air quality data challenges and opportunities in developing Asia.

While the lack of precision of LCS and the variety of qualities and standards of sensors, may lead to data misinterpretation and presentation issues, keynote speakers and panelists mentioned that the cost-efficiency of LCS and the wide use of these air quality sensors by “citizen-scientists” educate the public and inspire behavioral changes. In addition, the effective utilization of regular monitoring data for the quality control of LCS, the importance of consistent city, regional, and country-level monitoring, and the continued cooperation with other networks and international organizations, were also key points presented to mitigate the limitations of LCS.

 .

Download the Workshop’s Presentations

–Issues of LCS and Efforts Against the Issues: Thailand’s Experiences (presented by Dr. Supat Wangwongwatana)

–US-EPA’s efforts on wise use of LCS (presented by Dr. Alison Simcox)

–Results of the survey on HAQMN and technical studies in some EANET Participating Countries (presented by Dr. Keiichi Sato)

–Experience in using Low-Cost Sensors under ADB TA 9608 (presented by Ms. Karma Yangzom)

–Air quality data challenges and opportunities in developing Asia (presented by Ms. Maria Katherina Patdu)

.

For further inquiries, contact the Network Center for the EANET.

.

Photo credits: All rights reserved to EANET.

Mr. Bert Fabian appointed new EANET Coordinator

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

26 May 2022 – Bangkok, Thailand

The Secretariat is pleased to announce that the recruitment of a Temporary Job Opening (TJO) for an interim EANET Coordinator has been successfully completed with the selection of Mr. Bert Fabian, effective on 1 June 2022.

.

Mr. Fabian has been with The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as a Programme Officer since 2013 as lead for the Sustainable Mobility Unit’s activities in Asia and the Pacific. He has supported more than 15 countries in developing policies on transport, air pollution, and climate change and managed projects worth about 13.5 million USD including about 5.6 million USD allocated for Asia and the Pacific.

Mr. Fabian coordinated the activities of UNEP with the Global Fuel Economy Initiative and managed the Electric 2&3 Wheelers project in East Africa and Southeast Asia. He also managed projects on strengthening the air quality management community of practice in Asia and the Pacific and on understanding the relationships between COVID-19 and air quality impacts, policies, and measures in cities. Prior to joining UNEP, Mr. Fabian was the Transport Program Manager of Clean Air Asia. He has also worked for the Asian Development Bank on various transport and air quality projects.

Mr. Fabian has published and contributed to several books and studies on transport, air pollution, and climate change, like the Urban Air Pollution in Asian Cities: Status, Challenges and Management (2006) and the Transport and Carbon Dioxide Emissions: Forecasts, Options Analysis, and Evaluation (2009). Mr. Fabian holds a master’s degree in Urban and Regional Planning with a major in Transportation, and a B.S. Biology degree from the University of the Philippines.

The EANET Coordinator can be contacted at eanetsecretariat@un.org

.

Cover Photo credits: City Skyline by Thapanee Srisawat (2020), free of copyright license; profile photo: all rights reserved.

Next-Generation Air Quality Monitoring: Technologies, Communities, and Governance for Clean Air – Join us on November 26th!

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

.

Background

The Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET) was established in 2001 as a regional intergovernmental network to promote cooperation among countries in East Asia to address acid deposition problems. In 2021, at the Twenty-Second Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting (IG22), the 13 Participating Countries of the EANET agreed to expand its scope to address wider air pollution problems and launched the EANET Project Fund to encourage cooperation with partners outside of its network.

In the last 20 years, the EANET has made excellent progress in acid deposition monitoring cooperation, including on particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone. The Network has fostered a regional monitoring network and scientific exchange platforms which have contributed to solving acid deposition and air pollution problems in East Asia.

In November 2024, the Twenty-sixth Intergovernmental Meeting (IG26) on the EANET approved the Work Programme and Budget of the EANET Core Activities in 2025, including Activity 10: Promotion of public awareness on acid deposition, including other priority chemical species, etc.

In this respect, and in line with the efforts to facilitate the sharing of a common understanding on air quality issues, the EANET Regional Awareness Workshop in 2025: “Next-Generation Air Quality Monitoring: Technologies, Communities, and Governance for Clean Air”  will be organized on Wednesday 26 November in Bangkok , Thailand, and in a hybrid format as part of UNEP’s Clean Air Week 2025, from 24-28 November 2028, at the Sukosol Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand.

.

Short Description

Air pollution remains the single largest environmental health risk worldwide, with Asia experiencing the most severe impacts. Effective air quality management requires robust, reliable, and inclusive monitoring systems that integrate scientific innovation, community participation, and policy action. While governments and research institutions have traditionally relied on reference-grade monitoring, new technologies—including low-cost sensors, satellite monitoring, artificial intelligence (AI), and open-source toolkits—are reshaping the landscape of air quality management.

.

Objective and Participants

This session explores how innovative approaches are enabling more accessible, hyperlocal, and transparent data generation and governance. It brings together leading experts, civil society, academia to share lessons from on-the-ground experiences, advanced modelling approaches, community-led initiatives, and legal innovations such as the Pollution Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) bill in Thailand.

The discussion will focus on:

  • Pathways to integrate innovative monitoring into governance frameworks for cleaner air
  • How new technologies and open-source tools can strengthen monitoring and data transparency.
  • The role of numerical models, AI, and satellite data in supporting decision-making at the local, national and regional scale.
  • How community engagement and right-to-know legislation can empower citizens.

Expected in-person and online participants will include the EANET National Focal Points, Scientific Advisory Committee members, and other EANET members and partners, including policymakers, national researchers, and scientists. It will also welcome representatives of partner organizations working on related issues, as well as participants joining the Clean Air Week.

.

Tentative Agenda

.

Contact

.

Unlocking and Future-Proofing Air Quality Management in Asia – Join us on May 27-29th!

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

.

Background

Air pollution is one of the most pressing environmental health crises globally. It is responsible for more than 6.5 million deaths annually, the bulk of which – 70 percent – occur in the Asia Pacific. In addition to health hazards, air pollution threatens the region’s economy, food and water security, and climate systems. This hampers the region’s efforts to grow sustainably and alleviate poverty. Urbanization has been identified as one of the main drivers of environmental change with many cities having seen high — and in some areas, rising — levels of air pollution over the past decade. Everyone is affected, but women, children, the elderly, and people living in poverty are bearing the brunt of its impact. It is infringing on the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.

Many efforts and initiatives have been implemented over the past decades to tackle air pollution but have not been able to fully address the problem and need to be responsive to emerging global and regional challenges. At the Sixth Session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-6) in February 2024 in Nairobi, Kenya, member states underscored the need to elevate efforts on addressing the significant impacts of air pollution, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, and adopted a new resolution on Promoting regional cooperation on air pollution to improve air quality globally.

Within the context of this workshop, “future-proofing” refers to anticipating future challenges that will impact air quality management and identifying solutions, for example, weather and meteorological conditions driving the frequency of forest and wildfires, or increasing dust and sandstorms, driving haze and severe air pollution episodes. “Unlocking” refers to examining and identifying key policies and solutions leading to measurable improvement in air quality.

These can help inform implementation of the new resolution which requests UNEP to “form and facilitate a cooperation network on air quality” working with relevant stakeholders and regional initiatives such as the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET), the Malé Declaration, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution, the Asia-Pacific Clean Air Partnership (APCAP), North-East Asia Clean Air Partnership (NEACAP) and the Thematic Working Group on Air Quality and Health.

The resolution also requests UNEP to provide an “updated global online platform for network-wide information sharing and communication”. At the regional level, after the adoption of the Regional Action Programme on Air Pollution (RAPAP) in 2022, ESCAP is initiating the development of an online RAPAP Partnership and Coordination Platform. The Platform aims to facilitate complementarities among multilateral and multi-stakeholder cooperation mechanisms as well as countries to provide a repository of collaborative work and scale up the impact of joint actions.

.

Objective

This workshop is jointly organized by UNEP, ESCAP, and EANET to support the regional implementation of the UNEA resolution on promoting regional cooperation on air pollution to improve air quality globally and support discussions to “unlock” and “future-proof” air quality management in the region.

This workshop serves as EANET’s Regional Awareness Workshop in 2024 to inform its Participating Countries on the key challenges and emerging issues on air quality management and provide inputs to its Medium-Term Plan for 2026-2030. This workshop also serves as an important opportunity for ESCAP to inform stakeholders about the development of the RAPAP Partnership and Coordination Platform, map out activities of potential partners, and obtain feedback and suggestions on the Platform as a shared resource for information exchange and coordination, thus facilitating multilateral and international cooperation in support of RAPAP.

In this respect, the EANET Awareness Workshop in 2024 will be organized from 27-28 May in Conference Room 4 at the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok (UNCC), Thailand, and in a hybrid format, under the name “Unlocking and Future-Proofing Air Quality Management in Asia, Multi-stakeholder consultation workshop for improved multilateral and international cooperation on air pollution”. On 27 May, the 2024 edition of LowCarbon.Earth will be launched, inviting applications by startups working on six areas: Clean air; Agri-food; Renewable energy; Digital innovation; Sustainable mobility; and Plastic pollution. Finally, on 29 May in Meeting Room B, at the UNCC closed EANET meetings by invitation only (see the Program below) will take place back-to-back with the Workshop.

.

Program (as of 23 May)

 

.

.

For further inquiries, contact the EANET Secretariat, UNEP, or the Environment and Development Division, ESCAP.