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UNAIR NEWS – People of Surabaya awareness on healthy lifestyle is improving as about 96% of respondents from the population  want to have seven free smoking areas.

It was proven from the study conducted by five researchers of Faculty of Public Health (FKM)  ������ (UNAIR). The study was one of the topic discussed in a parallel discussion of “Symposium I: Innovation to Accelerate Infrastructure Development in Indonesia’ in Graha Institut Teknologi 10 Nopember, Wednesday, August 3. The respondents of the study were people of Surabaya in all sub-districts aged more than 17.

Those five researchers were Kurnia D. Artanti, Santi Martini, Kusuma S. Lestari, Sri Widati, and Hario Megatsari. The title of the study was ‘Public Opinion Survey with Perspective on Free Smoking Facility Availability  in Surabaya’.

Santi Martini who is also Vice Dean I FKM UNAIR explained that based on Surabaya City Regulation Number 5 in 2008 on Free Smoking Ares and Limited Smoking Areas. Surabaya already has five free smoking areas and two limited smoking areas. The free smoking areas are healthcare facilities, education facilities, children facilities, religious facility, and public transport while limited smoking areas are public space and working spaces.

Through the study conducted by Santi and her team, there are 96% of Surabaya people who want to have them all as free smoking area. It means the smoking habit is unwanted by most of the community.

“We want to push Surabaya to have those seven areas as free smoking areas. To advocate the effort, we have to find the evidence. We conduct  a research and a survey . Are the people really want those seven to be a hundred percent free smoking areas,” said Santi.

According to Santi, it should not be a difficult problem for the government to establish those to limited smoking areas as free smoking areas. The community support is the prove that they have a healthy lifestyle.

Limited Smoking Areas Deemed Ineffective

In public spaces, such as malls, we have special allocated rooms for smoking. According to Santi, the rooms are deemed ineffective to contain cigarettes’ exposure and their content.

“Even there are special rooms but the ventilation is the same, there is still pollution caused by it. It has been proven by a research on air quality monitoring conducted. In places where cigarette butts, ashtray and cigarette odour found, if we check the 2.5 pm all were above normal. WHO standards is 25 microgram per meter cubic. All above normal, way over it. Even it reached 40 times of it,” said the FKM researcher.

According to  Santi, with those two researches results, there are no more reasons for the government to call off the free smoking areas addition in Surabaya. Santi added nthat it was an effort from her FKM team from the academic community to push Surabaya to be green and clean city.

“We from the academic community must push Surabaya to be green and clean, So, not only green because of the vegetation but also clean which means clean air free from pollution,” said Santi. (*)

Author : Defrina Sukma S.
Editor    : Binti Q. Masruroh