ADB_book_18 April.qxp - Himalayan Document Centre - icimod

pollutants from land to sea and the reverse insummer (UNEP 2002) Pollutants can thus be carriedfrom country to country in the region and collectivecooperation and effort are required. The MaléDeclaration on Control and Prevention of AirPollution and its likely Transboundary Effects forSouth Asia, and the Atmospheric Brown CloudProject are examples of regional cooperation inaddressing these problems.Studies carried out in Nepal are at too early astage for any conclusive results. However, a lightdetection and ranging (LIDAR) observation fromFebruary 2003 showed long-range transport ofpollution (Figure 7.8). The layer at 2600 meters aboveground level is most likely due to dry convectiveFigure 7.8: LIDAR ObservationSource: Ramana et al. (2004)lifting of pollutants at distant sources and subsequenthorizontal upper air long-range transport (Ramana etal. 2004).Sources of EmissionsTransportationNepal’s transport sector is dominated by roadtransportation due to the country’s land-lockedgeographical position. Apart from roads, air transportis the only modern form of transportation. Airplanesreach many remote destinations in the kingdomwhere roads do not or only barely exist. High currentsand high slopes make water transportationimpossible along the rivers. The only train track is a52 km stretch from the border with India.Much of the urban air pollution in Nepal,particularly in Kathmandu Valley, is caused byvehicular emissions. The problem is magnified by thenarrow streets, poor traffic management, poorvehicle maintenance, and the use of adulterated,substandard fuel (Joshi 1993).There were 418,910 transport vehiclesregistered in Nepal in March 2004 (Figure 7.9), anincrease of 6.7% within the preceding eight-monthperiod. Of these, 249,282 vehicles were registered inthe Bagmati zone, an 11.2% increase from theprevious year. The total road length in March 2004was 16,042 km, giving an average of 26 vehicles perSuccess of Safa TemposKathmandu suffers from severe air pollution due to vehicle emissionsand is ideal for the introduction of zero emission electrical vehicles.With a population of approximately 1.5 million people, the city occupiesan area roughly 12 km wide. Thus, distances traveled are quite short.Speeds seldom exceed 40 km per hour and are generally below 30 km.The Global Resources Institute initiated the first phase of an electricvehicle program for Kathmandu in September 1993 with the conversionof a diesel three-wheeler to electric power. Following extensive tests onthe initial vehicle to optimize the drive system, seven new three-wheelerswere built and the first converted vehicle was retrofitted with the newdrive system. In August 1995, these eight vehicles were placed intoservice as a six-month demonstration project with a company providing public transportation. On February 20, 1996,these electric “tempos” — Safa tempos—were passed from the Institute to the owners of the Nepal Electric VehicleIndustry. Two other private companies have also been registered to operate electric public transportation networks.Since mid-September 1999, 3-wheeler diesel tempos, popularly known as Vikram tempos, have been banned inthe Valley. In their place, the Government made provisions to import petrol microbuses that meet Euro-1 standards. Newregistration of 3-wheeler diesel tempos was also banned. This decision dramatically increased the fleet of battery chargedand liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) 3-wheelers to fill the gap in meeting the public transport demand. Further, theGovernment reduced import duties on components for local assembly of electric three-wheelers from 60% to 5% and onfully assembled electric vehicles of all types from 150% to 10%.At present (early 2005) there are 450 Safa tempos in operation. Public response has been overwhelminglyfavorable, the only criticism being the rise in the electricity tariff, which will eventually add to the cost of the batteryrecharge.Source: Roy et al. (2001) and DOTM (2005)Chapter 7: Air Pollution and Climate Change87