Six gaseous pollutants may be included in AQI
The Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA) is exploring options to take into account the levels of six gaseous pollutants in the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi from the next winter.
It would give the Supreme Court-mandated panel a more holistic view of the Capital’s pollution scenario, based on which the Graded Response Action Plan could be enforced.
As of now, Delhi’s AQI is primarily based on two parameters – PM2.5 and PM10 – that dominate air pollution in the region. On certain days their levels shoot up nine to 10 times above the permissible limits in winter.
“This is the first time we are implementing the GRAP based on the AQI, which takes into account the levels of two primary pollutants – PM10 and PM2.5. We don’t want to disturb this setup as of now. But we are exploring options to include the levels of six
NEWDELHI:
other gaseous pollutants in the Delhi-NCR’s AQI from 2018 winter,” said Sunita Narain, a member of EPCA and director of the Centre for Science and Environment.
Even though PM10 and PM2.5 have been found to be the primary pollutants in the city’s air, the levels of some gaseous pollutants such as SO2, NO2 and Ozone among others spike occasionally after festive seasons because of cracker bursting and unfavourable meteorological conditions.
A task force of the Central Pollution Control Board headed by the member secretary of the country’s apex pollution monitoring is, however, constantly keeping a track on the levels of all the six gases round the year. “The National Air Quality Index takes into account eight pollutants, including PM10, PM2.5 and six other gases. But as the levels of particulate matter exceeds several times the permissible limit in Delhi-NCR we take into account these two as far as region’s AQI is concerned,” said A Sudhakar member secretary of CPCB.