Air quality
In Bangladesh, the Bank is helping to improve air quality and safe mobility in Dhaka by strengthening air quality monitoring and modernizing brick making and urban transport. Carbon emission reduction credits generated with Bank support are helping to improve working conditions, to protect people’s health and to provide better pay for workers.
In Mali, the Obsolete Pesticides Disposal and Prevention Project disposed of 532 tons of obsolete pesticides and toxic waste between 2014 and 2018. In Cote d’Ivoire, 329 tons of Obsolete Pesticides and Associated Waste (OPAWs) were successfully collected, transported, stored, and destroyed with the support of the Bank through the Obsolete Pesticides Management Project, including the funding of the elaboration of laws on the transport, storage, and disposal of pesticides to ensure the country’s sustainable management of pesticides.
With support from the World Bank’s $1 billion loans for Innovative Financing for Air Pollution Control and Hebei Air Pollution Prevention and Control, the concentration of PM2.5 was reduced by nearly 40 percent across the Hebei province of China between 2013 and 2017, and the use of clean heating reduced annual carbon dioxide emissions by six million tons, equivalent to taking 1.2 million gasoline passenger vehicles off the road per year.
In Lao PDR, the Bank supports the establishment of a stronger regulatory framework to reduce the use of prohibited pesticides and establish stringent ambient air quality standards. A separate Bank-supported project assisted the Government of Lao PDR with monitoring air quality in pollution hotspots and publicly disclosing monitoring results.
Through an investment loan in Peru the Bank supported a project to develop environmental information systems that included expanding the country’s air quality monitoring network to six new cities (Trujillo, Chiclayo, Iquitos, Huancayo, Cusco and Piura). The project also funded the construction of a government laboratory to test samples from its stations and to provide calibration and quality control of third-party labs.
Water pollution
The Bank is assisting Argentina with an ambitious integrated plan for the cleanup and sustainable development of the Matanza-Riachuelo River basin. The project is building a large wastewater collector on the left bank of the Riachuelo River, which will transport sewage to different treatment plants, thereby avoiding direct discharge into the river. The project is also constructing an 11.5-kilometer outfall that will lead to Río de la Plata. Additionally, the Integral Sanitation Plan will expand and/or build several treatment plants throughout the basin and construct waterfall aeration stations. These large-scale engineering works are crucial for the health of 7 million people living in the area, of whom at least 10 percent live below the national poverty line.
In Brazil, the Bank is supporting the state of Sao Paolo to address water scarcity challenges by providing incentives to increase use efficiency and to treat wastewater, thus reducing pollution and improving water quality.
In Romania, under the World Bank-supported Integrated Nutrient Pollution Control Project rural communities around the country are being equipped with essential tools needed to improve livestock manure management and prevent nitrates and other dangerous minerals from contaminating Romania’s soil and water supplies.
More results:
Matanza-Riachuelo River basin Sustainable Development Project
India National Ganga River Basin Project
Lebanon Lake Qaraoun Pollution Prevention Project
Togo: Urban Infrastructure Project
Vietnam: Coastal Cities Sustainable Environment Project
Other project examples on marine pollution can be found here.
Management of Land-based Pollution and Remediation of Hazardous Waste Sites
Recent analytical work conducted by the Bank, includes the identification of the types of industries contributing to land-based pollution in low- and- middle income countries and highlights knowledge and data gaps that have hindered a fuller understanding of this issue. For instance, the Bank has conducted risk-assessment and risk-management approaches and tools for identifying, prioritizing, and mitigating land-based pollution in LMICs and develop a framework for collecting samples and assess health impacts. The Bank’s analytical work on land-based pollution has also supported the creation and improvement of the global toxic site database. The database will increase understanding of drivers of chemical pollution and help officials make informed decisions.
The Montenegro Industrial Waste Management and Cleanup Project is helping to remediate industrial waste disposal sites and ensure that hazardous waste from industries is disposed in compliance with Montenegrin and European Union legislation. The project supports strengthening of the regulatory framework and development of infrastructure to provide environmentally acceptable solutions for waste management.
The China: Hunan Integrated Management of Agricultural Land Pollution Project is demonstrating a risk-based approach to manage heavy metal pollution in agricultural land. The project is also strengthening agricultural environmental monitoring and management and includes training activities tailored to the needs of government officials, environmental monitoring staff, and farmers.
In Pakistan the Bank is financing a green growth project in Punjab that has included the implementation of waste management interventions. The project has supported reforms to modernize the legal and regulatory framework and promote investments in cleaner technologies at the provincial level to reduce air and water pollution from sectors such as brick making and leather tanning.
In Bangladesh, the Bank is supporting microenterprises to increase the adoption of environmentally sustainable practices. While production and revenues have decreased with COVID-19, there have been businesses that have managed to adapt to the crisis. For instance, some mini-garment microenterprises repurposed production to produce masks and other Protective Personal Equipment to meet newfound demand due to COVID-19.
Indonesia and Senegal are improving solid waste management services and will include financing of infrastructure for collection, transfer, treatment, disposal, and waste recycling/composting. In addition, interventions will help strengthen sector governance and institutional capacity, including support to ensure the sustainability of solid waste management operations.
The Bank is supporting Zambia reduce environmental health risks, including from exposure to lead and strengthening the institutional capacity to manage and regulate chemicals. The project focuses on local populations living in critically polluted mining areas, particularly in the Kabwe Municipality.
More Results:
China Contaminated Site Management Project
Indonesia Improvement of Solid Waste Management to Support Regional and Metropolitan Cities Project
Lebanon Environmental Pollution Abatement Project
Senegal Municipal Solid Waste Management Project
Circular Economy
A portfolio of 35 projects have supported reforms in industries, value chains, the tourism sector, entrepreneurship, small and medium enterprises, public-private partnerships, and utilities. More recently, efforts have promoted access to finance to pilot resource efficiency, cleaner production, and green growth to enhance competitiveness and jobs.
Fossil fuel and agricultural subsidies are key obstacles to the circular economy. By artificially lowering the cost of fossil fuels, subsidies promote wasteful consumption and result in increased pollution and waste. Subsidies also lower the cost of oil-based products, like plastic, putting substitutes from renewable sources at a disadvantage. The Bank’s Energy Subsidy Reform Assessment Framework is a comprehensive analytical toolkit and assessment framework for helping countries to achieve politically and socially sustainable reforms. It includes specific guidance on how to estimate the local and global environmental benefits that could be achieved by phasing out subsidies for fossil fuels.
Several analytical studies on the topic of circular economy have been developed. In China, the Bank identified opportunities for circularity in the solid waste sector, as well as recommended further actions the government should take to enhance the effectiveness of its efforts towards circular economy. Similarly, a study assessed the need for greening Pakistan’s industrial sector to minimize adverse impacts on the environment and society and provided recommendations to promote a sustainable industrial development pathway.
Last Updated: Sep 19, 2023