Indoor Air Pollution and Energy Poverty in Armenia

By Ripsime Jangiryan, AWHHECSD-15 side event organized

by WECFMay, 2nd, 2007

Armenia

Area: 29.750 sq. kmArea: 29.750 sq. km

Population: 3.200.000Population: 3.200.000

Capital: YerevanCapital: Yerevan

The Problem More than 3 billion people worldwide depend on solid

fuels, including biomass fuels (wood, dung, agricultural residues) and coal, for their energy needs.

Cooking and heating with solid fuels on open fires or traditional stoves results in high levels of indoor air pollution.

Indoor smoke can lead to pollution levels 20 times higher than accepted WHO guideline values.

In Armenia, about 50% of population live below the poverty line and regularly use biomass fuels for heating and cooking.

Indoor smoke contains a variety of health-damaging pollutants:

particles (complex mixtures of chemicals in solid form and droplets)

carbon monoxide nitrous oxides sulphur oxides (mainly from coal) formaldehyde carcinogens (chemical substances known to

increase the risk of cancer) such as benzo[a]pyrene and benzene.

What are the health impacts?

Indoor air pollution can lead to:

acute lower respiratory infections chronic obstructive pulmonary disease lung cancer in adults pathological changes in blood damage of the nervous system

MDG goals (Armenia): Target 1 By 2015 reduce the poverty level lower than the

1990 level. Indicators: Proportion of population below $4 per day GDP per capita compared to the EU average Family allowance budget expenditure to poverty gap

(less family allowance aggregate) ratio Income of the poorest quintile to the income of the

richest quintile Ratio of poverty level outside Yerevan to poverty

level in Yerevan

What we have in reality…

Rural families cannot afford to use more than 1 or 2 light bulbs or heat more than one room of the house

People are forced to skimp on food to pay their utility bills or to buy wood

They often just use what they can find, burning toxic materials, manure, crop residues, plastic bottles or other waste for warmth

What needs to be done? Potential for fighting energy poverty

Offer discounts on energy to those with low income

Develop alternative energy sources and make them available at a reasonable price

Build up the economy, agriculture and ecotourism to create more jobs, thereby increasing people's purchasing power

Keep populations informed about possible impacts using mass media and by organizing information campaigns

Policy recommendations

To attract attention of the Government for developing the energy policy considering social and health aspects of poor population

Development of intersectoral partnerships: business, government and NGO sectors

Consideration and development of alternative energy sources

Safe maintenance of existing energy recourses until the alternatives will become accessible

Renewable Sources of Energy - situation in Armenia

WindWind BiomassBiomass SolarSolar Hydro poweHydro powerr

In the conditions of abject poverty In the conditions of abject poverty people do not perceive the people do not perceive the

information about the risk they run. information about the risk they run.

And they have no choice and have to And they have no choice and have to survive until they will be able to pay survive until they will be able to pay for cleaner methods of heating which for cleaner methods of heating which

are very expensive for them. are very expensive for them.

Ararat - Bible Mountain

Thank you!