Air Pollution and Health Impact in Mongolia: A Legal Environment Assessment
- VernacularTitle:Монгол Улсын агаарын бохирдол, эрүүл мэндийн нөлөөлөл: хууль, эрх зүйн орчны үнэлгээ
- Author:
Suvd B
1
;
Enkhjargal A
2
;
Burmaajav B
3
Author Information
1. Ach Medical University
2. National Center for Public Health
3. Ach Medical University; Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Mongolian Academy of Medical Sciences
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
air pollution;
PM₂.₅;
air quality management;
public health;
legal environment;
child health;
Mongolia
- From:Mongolian Medical Sciences
2026;217(3):21-33
- CountryMongolia
- Language:Mongolian
-
Abstract:
Background:Air pollution remains a major environmental health risk in Mongolia, particularly in Ulaanbaatar.
Although a legal and policy framework for air quality management is in place, evidence
on how legislation, institutional arrangements, monitoring systems, and health protection
mechanisms function together remains limited.
Objective:To assess air pollution levels, evidence of health impacts, and implementation of the legal
and regulatory environment for air quality management in Mongolia, and to identify key gaps
in comprehensive air quality management from the perspective of protecting children and
other vulnerable populations.
Materials and Methods:A mixed-methods assessment was conducted in 2023 combining document review, analysis
of secondary air quality monitoring data, and qualitative key informant interviews. Historical
monitoring data for SO₂, NO₂, PM₁₀, PM₂.₅, CO, and O₃ in Ulaanbaatar for 2008–2017 were
analyzed. Relevant laws, policies, standards, and institutional arrangements were reviewed,
while qualitative interview data were analyzed thematically. The findings were further
contextualized using a targeted evidence update for 2021–2026 and a post hoc secondary
analysis based on the five pillars of the 2026 comprehensive air pollution management
framework.
Results:Air pollution showed a marked seasonal pattern. Mean SO₂ concentrations were 7.57
times higher and NO₂ concentrations 1.66 times higher during the cold season than during
the warm season. The 24-hour mean concentration of PM₂.₅ during the cold season was
114.10 µg/m³, while PM₁₀ was 226.77 µg/m³; cold-season PM₂.₅ was 3.9 times higher than
in the warm season. Although Mongolia has an established constitutional and sectoral legal basis for air quality management, key informants identified persistent gaps in regulatory
enforcement, intersectoral coordination, institutional capacity, human resources, technical
capacity, economic incentives, and civil society participation. Monitoring coverage was
uneven across pollutants, with limitations in spatial coverage of PM₂.₅ and integration of air
quality and health data. The framework-based analysis further identified gaps across rights
protection, source-specific regulation, institutional accountability, standards and monitoring,
and implementation programmes.
Conclusion:The principal challenge for air quality governance in Mongolia is not the absence of legislation,
but the gap between legal and policy provisions and their effective implementation and
measurable health outcomes. Strengthening a child-centred, source-based and multisectoral
air quality management system that integrates institutional accountability, monitoring, health
surveillance, financing, and enforcement is warranted.
- Full text:2026101821310465613MMS-2026-217(3)-21-33.pdf
