Dubai: A series of new measures in recent years to cut carbon emissions and slash industrial air pollutants from cement plants and open quarry operations appears to be paying off, said the Ministry of Environment on Monday.

Air quality testing gauged from space via satellite reveals that the air that residents in the UAE breathe is well within international parameters as set forth by the World Health Organisation guidelines, the ministry said.

Fahd Mohammad Hareb, Director of the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water’s Air Quality Department, said in a statement that the country’s particulate matter (pm) of 2.5 levels did not exceed WHO guidelines.

He said that the WHO’s Regional Strategy for Health and Environment 2014-2019 for the Eastern Mediterranean pointed out that the UAE has a very low mortality resulting from environmental consequences such as air pollution compared with other countries in the region.

The results confirm that the country has undertaken significant efforts to improve the ambient air quality as an important component associated with quality of life. It also highlights the UAE National Agenda which will advance UAE Vision 2021’s goal of ensuring a high quality of life for its citizens and residents in a sustainable environment.

Hareb said air quality is one of the leading priorities under the UAE’s National Agenda because it is associated directly with human health, the environment and its impact on the economy. The country attaches great importance to improving air quality by achieving 90 per cent of the WHO Air Quality guidelines as a target by 2021.

“We continue to strengthen both human and financial capacities in the field of monitoring and controlling through a large network of stations distributed throughout the UAE. There are currently 46 air quality monitoring stations, in addition to a range of dust monitoring stations in crusher and quarry sites as well as cement factories. The UAE has directed special attention towards the development of legislative frameworks necessary to reduce pollutants and emissions in order to improve air quality.”

Hareb said the UAE’s air quality is exposed to many natural and manmade pressures as a result of development factors such as the increase in the number of industrial facilities, the rise in energy and water consumption, and growth in the number of vehicles due to the population growth and demand.