Centre points to tree cutting for Metro, bullet train as Mumbai battles air pollution
From hyper-local sensors to test air quality to controlling garbage burning and containing road dust, the environment ministry has suggested several steps to solve Mumbai’s worsening air pollution.
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The letter also pointed out that road dust is a “big source of poor air quality”, especially on the roads touching the coastal road and large building construction areas. (Express photo by Amit Chakravarty) The Centre has written to the Maharashtra government and its state pollution control board expressing concern over the air quality management in Mumbai, pointing out that there has been an increase in tree felling for infrastructure projects in the city, and advocated an increase in green cover. In a letter dated October 26, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has also sought an action taken report on the issues it has mentioned within a week.
“Over the last four years, a substantial number of trees have been cut down to make way for infrastructure projects such as the Mumbai Metro and Bullet Train Project. Trees play a vital role in mitigating air pollution by capturing suspended particulate matter. The authorities to focus on enhancing the green cover like parks and open spaces,” N Subrahmanyam, the joint director at the ministry, said. The letter was sent to the state environment department and the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB).
The Indian Express, in a series of reports, has exposed the worsening situation of Mumbai’s air quality, following which authorities have swung into action.
The letter stated that the Mumbai urban agglomeration and Vasai-Virar were funded under the finance commission’s air quality grants to implement a city action plan to improve air quality under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) and sought a report.
“Mumbai currently has 17 CAAQMS [Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations] devices. This should be supplemented by low-cost sensors. Hyperlocal sensors will allow a better understanding of how the air is getting polluted, and over a period of a few years, a clearer understanding of the source will enable an ability to police and therefore control,” it said.
The letter also pointed out that the levels of particulate matter (PM) 2.5 jumped over 300 on many days during the last winter in December, January and February. “Above 150, it is declared an emergency in most developed parts of the world,” it said. A dedicated team should be put in place to investigate and analyse pollution hotspots whenever the PM 2.5 reading exceeds 400 µg/m³ at a CAQMS, it added.
“Garbage burning is common in South Mumbai and office complexes in BKC. With data, monitoring will get better and such practices can be controlled. In a larger context, wind patterns can be analysed and try to identify sources of PM 2.5 and PM 10,” the letter said.
The letter also pointed out that road dust is a “big source of poor air quality”, especially on the roads touching the coastal road and large building construction areas. “Cleaning roads daily using recycled water will ensure control of road dust,” it said.
Commenting on the monitoring of building constructions, it said that the construction norms of buildings require higher levels of dust mitigation norms. “BMC [Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation] came out with guidelines to be followed by developers last year. Effective monitoring of rules is required to prevent dust,” it pointed out.
“For mega infrastructure projects such as coastal road, there are rules in place. However, monitoring for implementation of these rules is required. Trucks carrying cement through the city are required to have tarp covering for arresting dust emission. The emission of dust from construction of Noida’s new airport is lower compared to the construction of Navi Mumbai airport,” the letter stated.
On sewage treatment, the letter said that there has been a decline in the treatment of Mumbai’s sewage due to a two-year-long impasse in the tendering process, resulting in the untreated sewage being discharged into the ocean. “The implementation of waste segregation is essential to avoid the disposal of biodegradable waste, electronic waste, and single-use plastics into landfills. By doing so, the emission of harmful pollutants from the Deonar landfill can be effectively curtailed, ultimately leading to an improvement in the average life expectancy of the residents in the Deonar region,” it said.
The union ministry has advocated considering the imposition of a fine on incinerating waste. “To facilitate this enforcement, the BMC could introduce a dedicated mobile application (or leverage the existing Mumbai Police app) that enables individuals to capture photographs of garbage burning, complete with geo-tags, and forward them to the Central Authority for immediate intervention. There may be celebrity-driven campaigns against garbage burning,” the letter added.
Creating incentives for delocalised waste to power plants will prevent air pollution due to the transportation of waste and will reduce coal and garbage burning, the Centre has suggested.
“Municipalities can make citizens active stakeholders by organising awareness campaigns, working with local media and doctors who can explain the risks of sending children when the air pollution spikes. There can be emergency measures and ‘stay- at-home’ advisories put in place when PM2.5 exceeds 200 µg/m³,” it said.
In an important suggestion, the letter said that after Mumbai joins the national grid, power plants within a 50 km radius of Mumbai may be used only for emergency operations. It also suggested monitoring in the implementation of PUC or pollution under control compliance and said the technology to scan a number plate and check the PUC status should be applied.
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