Lhakpa Quendren

Phuentsholing—Fifty-four-year old Birtaman Rai and residents of Phurpaling village in Samphelling Gewog, Chhukha are increasingly worried about the potential health risks posed by the thick, toxic smoke emitted by nearby factories in Pasakha.

It wasn’t until recently that they realised the extent of the toxic smoke released late at night.

Phurpaling, located on the slope opposite to the three oldest factories in Pasakha —Bhutan Carbide and Chemicals, Bhutan Ferro Alloys, and Bhutan Silicon Metal (P)— has long been affected by industrial emissions.

Recently, locals have started to voice their growing anxiety over the smoke and its harmful impacts on their health.

“Long-term exposure to industrial smoke could harm our health. For now, without medical evidence, we cannot directly attribute our illnesses, such as coughing, to the industrial smoke,” Birtaman Rai said. “Industrial dust particles are evident on leaves during the dry season, though they are washed away during the wet season.”

Frustrated residents claim that the toxic smoke starts to be released around 10pm. This, they say, can have adverse effects on their respiratory health and overall well-being.

Over the last three months, particulate matter (PM) 2.5 levels at Pasakha Industrial Estate often exceeded the national standard of 60 micrograms per cubic metre, reaching as high as 214.5 micrograms per cubic metre.PM 10 levels, however, generally remained within the national standard of 200 micrograms per cubic metre, although some readings are nearing the limit.

This means that emissions raise public health concerns, given that smaller particles such as PM 2.5 can penetrate deeper into the respiratory and cardiovascular systems, which causes more severe health effects compared to PM10.

Medical experts acknowledge the adverse health effects of poor air quality but point out the challenge of correlating specific conditions like diabetes or kidney disease to air pollution due to the lack of concrete laboratory evidence. “While air quality affects general health, confirming a direct link to specific diseases is difficult,” said a medical doctor.

In 2019, 99 percent of the global population lived in areas with air quality below World Health Organisation (WHO) standards, which resulted in 4.2 million premature deaths from outdoor (ambient) air pollution. Low and middle-income countries, especially in the WHO South-East Asia and Western Pacific Regions, were the most affected.

The WHO guidelines, which are stricter than the national standard, recommend that annual average concentrations of PM 2.5 should not exceed 10 micrograms per cubic metre, and for PM 10, the limit is 20 micrograms per cubic metre.

International research shows that air pollution and climate change affect both the duration and quality of sleep, threaten physical and mental health—especially through the respiratory, cardiovascular, and nervous systems—and shorten life expectancy.

In addition to health concerns, industrial emissions are impacting agriculture. Aita Singh Rai, a 45-year-old farmer from Sengyagang, a hilltop village between the Pasakha Industrial Estate and the factories, said that air pollution has negatively affected vegetable cultivation. “Vegetables like spinach are not thriving due to the pollution. If this continues, even areca nut trees might be at risk,” he said.

The corrosive effects of industrial smoke are also evident. Corrugated Galvanized Iron (CGI) sheets rust and deteriorate within two to three years due to chemical reactions with pollutants in the smoke.

Despite numerous appeals to local and government authorities, Phurpaling residents feel their concerns are being overlooked. “We have raised the issue at multiple levels, but no concrete action has been taken,” Som Bahadur, a 68-year-old resident, said.  “Help seems unlikely, at least for now. We have even approached our elected representatives but it seems no one is listening to our concerns.”

The residents are asking for stricter regulatory action and improved monitoring systems. Some feel they need to be compensated for the potential damage caused by industrial activities.

“The issue was discussed in Parliament in the past, but nothing has been done against the factories. Despite three governments changing, we are yet to see something being done about it,” said another resident.

The Department of Industry is working with the Department of Environment and Climate Change to deploy an AI-based monitoring system, including sensors and CCTV, to enhance transparency and efficiency in tracking emissions.

Pasakha Industrial Estate’s senior environmental technician, Leki Wangdi, said that their focus will be on implementing real-time monitoring systems to identify high emission factories and address the issue.

“We have been monitoring both visually and scientifically. We also monitor the ambient air quality,” he said, adding that not many incidents occur during the daytime due to close monitoring and the presence of management teams at their respective factories.

“After the end product is finished, gases are released, but they should remain within permissible limits,” Leki Wangdi said. “The lack of digitalised equipment is hindering monitoring efforts.”

Past joint monitoring efforts have shown smoke concentrations within permissible limits, but complaints continue.

A study on the travel distance of industrial dust particles is expected to be conducted soon.

All factories are mandated to have installed air pollution control systems with energy metres. Penalties are imposed, and immediate measures are taken to reduce emission loads in cases of excessive emissions.

From 2022 to date, penalties amounting to Nu 0.8 million has been imposed on nine factories for non-compliance with excessive fugitive emissions, point source emissions, and failure to adhere to environmental clearance terms.

There are incidents where factories comply with standards for a few months after being penalised, only to face repeated penalties for the same pollution. For instance, a manufacturing factory was penalised five times, totaling Nu 260,000, for excessive fugitive emissions.

There are 49 industries in Pasakha, including seven non-operational ones, mainly chemical, metal and mineral, brewery and beverage, oxygen plant, animal feed, concrete products, edible oil packaging, and fibre products, among others.

The General Secretary of the Association of Bhutanese Industries did not respond to Kuensel’s query.