Soaring pollution in Indonesia's capital has left 35-year-old Asep Muizudin Muhamad Darmini hooked up to breathing tubes at a Jakarta hospital, gazing at the dense grey haze outside.
Air pollution is hardly a new phenomenon in the megalopolis, but monitors and activists say the effects have been even worse than usual this year.
Before a regional summit last week, it even trimmed power generation at the Suralaya coal plant near Jakarta in a bid to tackle high levels of PM2.5, a class of pollutants which can penetrate deep into the lungs. Air pollution is driven by multiple causes, with factors like warmer air, wind patterns, and topography playing a role in where pollutants concentrate.
In 2021, activists and citizens won a lawsuit that found President Joko Widodo and top officials negligent in protecting Jakartans from pollution.- Lifelong problems -"The government doesn't appear to fully comprehend our rights and their obligations," the 35-year-old told AFP.Children are among the most vulnerable to air pollution as their bodies are still developing, and early exposure can have lasting impacts.
The entire capital is due to move next year to the newly constructed city of Nusantara, on Borneo island, a shift also intended to alleviate pollution.
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