Write about air pollution !! Your views !!
Due to excessive industrialization and unwarranted automobile growth the air resource has come under the catastrophic range of pollution. Major air pollutants are particulate matter, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, photochemical oxidants, peroxyacetyl nitrate and peroxy benzoyl nitrate, metals and other gases & vapours (hydrogen sulphide, ammonia etc) effects of which can be devastating. Major contributing factors were: -
Migration of population to urban areas
Increase in consumption patterns
Rapid industrial development
Higher levels of energy consumption
Growth in vehicles
Lack of regulating standards etc
STATE OF AIR POLLUTION -INDIA
Rapid growth & development is exerting tremendous pressures on the quality and stock of natural resources. This is more prominent in India because of growing population. Growing population, leading to increase in the number of vehicles, and growth in industrial and power sectors, is exerting tremendous pressure on atmosphere. The index of industrial production has increased from 140 in 1997/98 to 222 in 2005/06 (Indiastat, 2007). Total power generation in India has gone upto 0.59 million GWh in 2004/05 mainly based on coal. Industrial and power sectors are known to be as point sources of pollution and are controllable by proper siting, appropriate stack heights, and installation of efficient control systems at the exhausts. On the other hand vehicles are known to be as mobile sources of pollution and require special measures for its control. Vehicles not only emit pollutants, but are also responsible for re-suspension of road dust due to their movement.
Over the years, air pollution is a concern in most of the urban centres of the country. Rural areas are also plagued by problems of indoor air pollution. With a view to ascertain the ambient air quality at various locations in the country, the National Air Monitoring Network has been established. In India, there are 326 monitoring stations spread across 32 states and union territories. Air pollutants such as SO2 (sulphur dioxide), NOx (oxides of nitrogen), SPM (suspended particulate matter), and RSPM (respirable suspended particulate matter) are regularly monitored at these monitoring stations.
Suspended particulate matter (SPM)
SPM emerges out as the pollutant of concern among all the Indian cities. All the cities (except few southern and north eastern cities) have been found to be violating the annual average residential ambient air quality standard during 1995-2004. North Indian cities like Agra, Delhi, Kanpur, Lucknow etc which have shown maximum annual average SPM levels during 1995-2004.
Oxides of Nitrogen and Sulphur (NOX & SO2)
NOx concentrations have also remained under the annual average residential standards in most of the cities. However, some cities like Chitor, Alwar, Dhanbad, Howrah, Pune, Kolkata, Kota, Udaipur, have shown violation of annual average NOx standards during 1995-2004.
SO2 levels have been within the limits in most of the cities. Only, some industrial citieslike Anpara, Vadodara, Dhanbad, Howrah, Jamshedpur, Jharia, Nagda, Surat, and Vapi have shown rare and little violation of prescribed standards during 1995-2004.
Therefore, it can be concluded that air pollution levels specially SPM has remain above the residential area limits in most of the urban centres of India.
AIR POLLUTION FROM TRANSPORT SECTOR
Emissions assessed in the Auto Fuel Policy for various cities of India are shown in Table I.
Table I Vehicular pollution loads (tonnes/day) in eight Indian cities
Source MoPNG (2002)
Rise in vehicular fleet
In India, the number of vehicles have increased rapidly from about 37 million vehicles in 1997 to 67 million vehicles in 2003. Improvements in vehicular technology norms and fuel quality have led to lesser increase in emission loads as compared to the rise in vehicular fleet.
The number of vehicles per 1000 persons is significantly above the all India average of about 10. In some of the cities, the number of vehicles per 1000 persons are comparable to those in the cities in developed countries.
AIR POLLUTION – IMPACT ON HEALTH
Major polluting industries and automobiles emit tonnes of pollutants every day, thereby deteriorating the air quality and exposing citizens to great health risks. Studies report 2.3% increase in deaths with a 100 µg/m³ increase in TSP (total suspended particles) concentrations in Delhi. According to a World Bank study using 1992 data, the annual health cost to India was about Rs. 5,550 crores due to ambient air pollution. Out of this, the health cost of air pollution in Delhi alone was found to be about Rs. 1000 crores[1].
INITIATIVES TAKEN SO FAR
There had been a number of interventions taken to abate air pollution levels in various urban centres of India. Few of them are listed here:-
1. Enactment of ‘The Air (Pollution Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981’
The Air (Pollution Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1981 was enacted by invoking the Central Government’s power under Article 253 to make laws implementing decisions taken under Stockholm conference. The objective of the Act is to provide for the prevention, control and abatement of air pollution and establish an authority for above purpose and to assign them with powers and functions. The authorities under the Act are the Central Pollution Control Board at the central level and the State Pollution Control Board at the level of individual states. Under Section 20 of the Air (Pollution Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1981, State Pollution Control Boards are given power to give instructions for ensuring standards for emission from automobiles. Under Section 17 of the Act, it is the function of the State Board to lay down the Standards for the emission of air pollutants from automobiles in consultation with the Central Boards and having regard to the standards for the quality of air laid down by the Central Board. Section 20 provides that to ensure that the standards for the emission are complied with, State Government shall in consultation with State Board, give such instructions, as may be deemed necessary, to the authority in charge of motor vehicles under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 and such authority shall be bound to comply with such instructions.
2. AMBIENT AIR STANDARDS
In India, air-quality standards were adopted in 1982 and are enforceable under Section 16(2)(h) of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.