Clean air demands preventive measures

The Emergency Response Action Plan (ERAP) for implementation under different Air Quality Index (AQI) categories in five cities and towns — Guwahati, Nalbari, Nagaon, Silchar and Sivasagar — and National Ambient Air Quality Standards, notified by the Assam government, was long overdue. These cities and towns have consistently failed to meet the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, and until AQI monitoring is significantly strengthened and made robust, the intent of ERAP enforcement will remain on paper. The notified framework lists measures to be initiated by urban local bodies, traffic police, the transport department, district administration, the Pollution Control Board of Assam, and the superintendent of police of the five cities and towns, which were identified as Non-Attainment Cities (NAC), when the AQI level falls to the moderate & poor, very poor, and severe categories as per the National Air Quality Index. The proposed measures include stopping entry of truck traffic (except essential commodities); halting major construction activities (like construction of roads, multi-storeyed buildings, etc.) that contributes to air pollution; shutting operations of brick kilns, hot mix plants, and stone crushers; restricting the operation related to production in refinery and coke industries; enhancing parking fees by 3-4 times in busy commercial areas; stopping use of coal/firewood in hotels and open eateries; and closing barbeque restaurants depending on different levels of AQI. While the measures are primarily focused on vehicular pollution and containing construction and demolition wastes, containing road dust and municipal waste management need to be prioritised in ERAP, especially in Guwahati. A study conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati, identified road dust, rather than vehicular emission, to be the primary contributor to the capital city’s air pollution. The IIT study also found that vehicles indirectly contribute to road dust by resuspending dust particles deposited along the roads. Silt and waste removed from drains in the city and left on the roadside for days has been a persistent concern. Apart from silt being washed back to the drains during rain, the dried silt deposited on the roadside adds to the city’s pollution burden with every passing vehicle, leaving road dust to rise and remain suspended in air. The IIT Guwahati study, conducted by its Air and Noise Pollution Research Lab, Civil Engineering Department, recommended suitable mitigation measures such as regularly sweeping and cleaning roads to minimize dust accumulation and to reduce particulate matter contributions from road dust. The ERAP recommendation for increasing frequency of mechanised cleaning of roads and sprinkling of water on roads (at least twice in a day) and identifying road stretches with high dust generation when AQI deteriorates to the “Severe” category needs to be an integral component of daily road sweeping and cleaning activities of Guwahati Municipal Corporation, irrespective of its AQI level. Urban local bodies of Silchar city and three other towns drawing lessons from Guwahati’s operational management and challenges in maintaining air quality and adopting similar measures can help them shift from reactive clean-ups to preventive measures for air-quality management. Traffic management in these cities also needs overhauling at the earliest to ensure better air quality. A mixed mode of traffic adds to vehicular pollution as it slows down the traffic. Developing arterial roads can help divert slower modes of traffic to avoid coming on the main thoroughfares through strict traffic guidelines. Unrestricted movement of E-rickshaws on main roads, which frequently stop to pick up and drop passengers en route, has led to worsening of traffic congestion. Even though movement of E-rickshaws is to be restricted to lanes and by-lanes and their movement is banned on main roads in Guwahati, due to weak enforcement they continue to ply on main roads, adding to traffic chaos. While these battery-operated rickshaws do not directly contribute to air pollution, their slow movement causes petrol and diesel vehicles to become congested, which significantly increases air pollution from vehicular emissions. In many towns, too, this problem has aggravated and has become a serious traffic challenge and calls for urgent measures before the air pollution due to traffic congestion slips to an alarming level. The increasing fleet of electric buses and electric autorickshaws plying on Guwahati roads is a positive development, and facilitating their smooth movement can motivate more people to commute by these public transports and reduce the use of their private vehicles for daily commuting. The ERAP will help adopt emergency measures whenever the AQI level worsens, but the pragmatic approach is to focus more on preventive measures so that air quality can be maintained at a normal level. Achieving this requires a collective effort from the state government, local bodies, various stakeholders, like institutions and businesses, and, most importantly, the citizens. Instead of waiting for air quality to turn poor or other worse categories, the collective effort must remain keeping the air clean and breathable to ensure sustainable growth of cities. Prevention must become a daily practice for everyone to secure clean air for all.