Many Jakartans are as used to air pollution as the air we breathe (quite literally), but the issue has been thrust into the spotlight again this week thanks to a trending social media hashtag in which people shared photos of horrible smog in the capital.
Recently, Jakarta once again topped the list of the most polluted cities in the world, according to data released by real-time pollution monitoring platform AirVisual. While that is hardly unusual, this time, Jakarta-based netizens are trying to raise awareness about the air pollution problem by encouraging citizens to snap the effects of contaminants on the air we breathe and share them on social media using the hashtag #SetorFotoPolusi (#UploadPollutionPhotos).
Pio Kharismayongha, a 40-year-old photographer from satellite city Tangerang, recently complained on Twitter that he has to wear a pollution mask whenever he’s in Jakarta during the daytime. He initiated the #SetorFotoPolusi hashtag yesterday along with this tweet of a smoggy Jakarta skyline.
Motret Jakarta pas siang hari sering gagal dapat view bagus karena saking parahnya polusi udara. Salah satunya yang terlihat di foto ini.
Lo punya foto bagaimana buruknya polusi udara di Jakarta ga? Share ke gue dg tagar #SetorFotoPolusi kalo punya pic.twitter.com/zvLupMbzsy
— Pio Kharismayongha (@piokharisma) June 25, 2019
“I often fail to get nice views of Jakarta for daytime photography because of how horrible the air pollution is. This photo is an example. Do you have photos showing how terrible the air pollution in Jakarta is? Share them with me with the hashtag #SetorFotoPolusi,” Pio tweeted.
Netizens quickly answered Pio’s calls with these distressing photos, taken from various locations in Jakarta.
https://twitter.com/doggudoggu/status/1143654510943850496
sore kemarin, diambil dari gedung perpusnas #SetorFotoPolusi pic.twitter.com/WBYLGF33t3
— . (@sushirolll_) June 26, 2019
“Yesterday evening, taken from the National Library Building”
ini pas pulang dinas malam, jam 7an pagi. Percuma ngeluh jakarta polusi tapi ke warung aje pade naek motor~ #setorfotopolusi pic.twitter.com/dIPssNPfzm
— Heri Setiawan (@herireh) June 25, 2019
“[This was taken] when I was on the way home after a night shift, at around 7 in the morning. There’s no use of complaining about Jakarta’s pollution when people ride their motorcycles to go to the warung”
Pas CFD tgl 23 Juni om @piokharisma #SetorFotoPolusi pic.twitter.com/e8LlRMMYPN
— parisya (@parisya7) June 25, 2019
“Car Free Day (CFD) on June 23”
#SetorFotoPolusi 26/06/19 08:48 pagi No Filter / Ciputra World 2 https://t.co/eT4TWZ9Asx pic.twitter.com/2dJLnPwcdA
— Desyanto Lie (@desyanto_lie) June 26, 2019
Taken on 24 April 2019, 08:52 WIB
Lebak Bulus, Gedung Palma Tower, Lantai 20
#SetorFotoPolusi pic.twitter.com/53Glbf0IF7— Azalia Putri (@azaliaptr_) June 25, 2019
AirVisual recorded Jakarta’s Air Quality Index (AQI) average at 240 from a 0-500 scale yesterday morning. This morning, the city’s AQI average was recorded at 164.
If you’re worried about getting sick due to the bad quality of air, Greenpeace Indonesia has recommended that Jakartans start wearing pollution masks because “the air pollution is at its worst” recently.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BzJ9plwBFVK/
Depressingly for our lungs, Jakarta have actually intermittently appeared on the list of cities with the worst air quality in the world. On average, the Indonesian capital was among the worst cities in Southeast Asia for all of last year, while Indonesia as a country didn’t do that well either.
Internationally, Indonesia ranked 11th in the list of the world’s most polluted countries with an AQI average of 42.01. Though it’s nothing to be proud about, Indonesia is still some ways off from the worst polluter, Bangladesh, which had an average of 97.10.
Is the government concerned about air quality in Jakarta? Well, apparently not, as the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) yesterday said they don’t refer to AirVisual for air pollution data because the platform’s air monitoring tools are not installed outdoors. Jakarta’s Acting Environmental Agency Chief Andono Warih also said yesterday that the quality of air in Jakarta is “still moderate” in general and better when compared with big cities in other countries.
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