Volunteer group to examine source of lead in Tbilisi
A group of volunteers will examine 20 families in Georgia’s capital of Tbilisi to determine the source of lead particles. Photo: IPN.
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Twenty families and several non-governmental organisations have teamed up and created a volunteer group to determine the volume of lead particles in Tbilisi air, announces Georgia Alliance for Safe Roads.
A group of volunteers will examine 20 families in Georgia’s capital of Tbilisi to determine the source of lead particles.
Starting next week we will start examining all 20 families where lead particles have already been found, but the source of it is not clear. We will inspect the living environment, will take samples from the walls, floors, dishes, food products, toys and so on”, said chairwoman of the alliance Eka Laliashvili.
Laliashvili said that the samples will be sent to the laboratory and the results will be known in about three weeks.
The government tells us that there is no lead particles in the atmosphere but the fact is that it is somewhere. We want to show the government exactly where the source of lead can be found. Regulations which do not exist in Georgia today should be launched. Imported products are not checked for lead”, Laliashvili said
Laliashvili said that these 20 families appealed to the alliance themselves and asked them to find out what the source of lead is.
The following organisations are involved in the research: Georgia Alliance for Safe Roads, Green Alternative, Partnership for Road Safety, Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia and Quality Lab. This initiative is supported by the government of Sweden through the Orbeliani platform.
Georgia’s National Agency of Environment has reported based on the latest data of the World Health Organisation (WHO) that the air pollution in the country equals the average air pollution levels of Eastern European countries.
The lead quantity in fuel at filling stations in Georgia is in accordance with the quality norms defined by the Georgian government's decree, announces the Environment Protection Supervision Department of Georgia’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment Protection.
A recent study by the National Environmental Agency (NEA) shows that most air pollutants are within the normal range in Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Batumi.
The government of Georgia has approved the atmospheric air standard, which will enter into force starting from August 1, 2018, announces the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture.
Tests conducted by the National Environmental Agency (NEA) on 21 January show the concentration of four pollutants in the atmosphere in Tbilisi, Batumi, and Kutaisi to be within normal levels, except for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and solid particle (PM10) concentrations.
The lead level in children’s blood and water quality were the main topics of the Intersectoral Coordination Council session headed by Georgian PM Mamuka Bakhtadze on March 26.
A group of NGOs and specialists which teamed up in January 2019 have released the results of a study which aimed to determine the source of lead particles in Tbilisi.
The first nationwide survey has been released, with 1,578 children tested, which reads that 41 per cent of Georgian children have elevated blood levels of lead. The study was conducted between September and December 2018 as part of the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS), the largest household survey worldwide in which Georgia participated.
The lead level in children’s blood has gone down, the Head of the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Amiran Gamkrelidze stated today.
The Government of Georgia has established safety standards and technical regulations for toys, which says that the Market Surveillance Agency will be obliged to inspect toys on the Georgian market and issue recommendations.