Air Pollution in India
Introduction:
- According to data from a real-time source apportionment study that was briefly interrupted earlier this month but restarted earlier this month, secondary aerosols and the transportation industry have both contributed over 30% of Delhi’s air pollution after November 9.
Additional information about the report:
- Although the number of biomass burning incidents has decreased dramatically, it is still a substantial contributing element, sometimes contributing more than 25% of all pollutants on certain days.
- IIT Kanpur and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee collaborated on the study.
- The new data set’s findings are consistent with the trends in air pollution that Delhi experiences at this time of year.
- While daily, weekly, and monthly averages may vary depending on where in the city you are, the main sources of pollution have been identified for a long time.
- They are also rather well captured and understood in terms of their relative contribution as well as their day-night, monthly, or seasonal fluctuations.
- In actuality, the data gap about air pollution in Delhi has shrunk during the past ten years.
- With the abundance of data currently available, scientists have also been able to ascertain the precise flow patterns and durations of stay of various contaminants in the atmosphere at different times of the year.
- However, data is just an enabler; its purpose is to make action easier.
- And it is the area in which sufficient efforts still appear to be missing.
- At least ten years have passed since Delhi’s air pollution became a major news story.
Several important tactics that can be used are:
- Reducing emission from vehicles:
- Make public transit more accessible, economical, and efficient to encourage people to utilise it.
- Promote the use of electric vehicles by creating infrastructure and offering incentives.
- Establish and strictly enforce stringent pollution regulations for automobiles.
- Use congestion pricing to deter the use of private vehicles in congested locations.
Managing Industrial Air Pollution:
- Enforce stringent pollution regulations for industries, and periodically check for compliance.
- Encourage industries to use cleaner production techniques and technologies.3. Motivate industries to convert to renewable energy sources or cleaner fuels like natural gas.4. To reduce exposure to pollutants, establish industrial zones away from residential areas.
- Overseeing the Activities of Construction and Demolition:
- Strictly regulate dust at building sites to reduce particulate matter emissions.
- To stop dust from spreading, properly cover building items.
- To prevent open burning, dispose of garbage from building and demolition projects appropriately.
- To reduce disturbance and pollution, enforce rules requiring construction projects to be completed on schedule.
- Resolving the Burning of Agricultural Waste:
- Provide farmers more options for handling their agricultural waste, like automated processing or composting.
- Inform farmers about the dangers of stubble burning and encourage environmentally friendly methods.
- Increase the severity of the laws prohibiting stubble burning and apply sanctions for violations.
- Improving City Greenery:
- To enhance natural air purification in metropolitan areas, plant more trees and create more green spaces.
- Encourage vertical vegetation and rooftop gardens to enhance air quality and lessen heat stress.
- Promote the usage of locally native trees and plants that are suited to the climate.
- Preserve the biodiversity and natural ecosystems that are now present in the city and its environs.
- Public Education and Awareness:
- Increase public knowledge of air pollution’s causes and effects on health.
- Inform the public on how to lessen their own impact on air pollution.
- Encourage the adoption of environmentally friendly habits including carpooling, public transportation, and energy-efficient equipment.
- Promote community involvement in pollution prevention and air quality monitoring programmes.
- Coordinating policies and collaborating regionally:
- Consider air pollution to be a regional problem and work in tandem with states that are adjacent.
- Exchange information and knowledge about air quality to create collaborative mitigation plans.
- Put in place regional policies that deal with issues of shared air quality and transboundary pollution.
- Work together to do research and create cutting-edge technology for reducing air pollution.
- Implementing these measures presents challenges.
- When the issue is at its worst, in the winter, there has been no discernible improvement in the city’s air quality, despite all the attention it has received.
- There is no pattern in the quality of the air that indicates long-term efforts are being undertaken to address it.
- In fact, the talks about air quality have already shifted off the radar since the occurrences of burning biomass have decreased over the past few weeks and the haze and smog that hovered over Delhi and the surrounding areas during the first week of this month have mostly cleared.
- This is unsettling. Since air pollution is not an issue that lasts for two or four weeks.
- Although not as obviously unbearable as it is in the winter, poor air quality persists for the most part of the year.
- It cannot be addressed with impromptu solutions.
- In conclusion, a thorough plan that accounts for all of the main causes of pollution must be created and put into action throughout the short, medium, and long terms. Even if they are being made, the efforts as of right now are not having a noticeable impact.
