Suggestions to check Air pollution

Dear Sir,

Few suggestions to check pollution. As per report published in HT

Causes

1.Pollution from Crackers 11%

2.Stubble and waste burning 26%

3.Road dust 38%

4.Vehicular emission 20%

5.Thermal power plants 5%

Suggestions

1.Instead of Total Ban on crackers due to religious practices ,tribunal should allow crackers with permissible limits of sound and air pollution. No to Cracker campaigns have lost its appeal and a law needs to be framed to check indiscriminate usage of crackers. Community Deepawali be celebrated, ban sale of crackers to individuals.

2. Agriculture waste should be used for making organic compost, Government `should issue guidelines in this direction by declaring it as a source of carbon for organic composting after consultations with agriculture ministry. Farmers will not burn resource.

3.

a)Constructions be stopped during peak pollution months and sprinklers be made mandatory on construction sites.

b) Sweeping of roads by brooms be stopped instead dust suction machines be used. As immediate measures sweeping be allowed twice a week. impose heavy fines on littering of garbage.

c) installation of sprinklers be made mandatory on high rise buildings, these to be made operational during fixed hours especially  during peak hours of pollution.

d) Guidelines and penalties to Polluting industries / factories.

e)Since lower speed of vehicles leads to more pollution ,odd even scheme should be implemented again.

f) improve last mile connectivity to metro stations, shared autos be encouraged

g) Goods trains to run on metro lines after midnight to check pollution by trucks entering the city.

4. Emissions from power plants be checked by installing filters or water sprinklers as wind carries dust particles from as far as 300km so even power stations based outside the city continue to pollute environment.

5. Total ban on dumping of wet green waste on landfill sites as this waste when burns with plastic waste produces green house toxic  gases. All landfill sites continuously generate smoke due to slow burning of wet waste. Sites for neighbourhood composting should be earmarked to reduce waste generation.Awareness campaigns on importance of waste segregation and composting at source be launched. Trainings be conducted in this regard.

7 Total ban on manufacturing and sale of polybags as they emit toxic fumes at landfill sites.

6. Horticulture department should plant more trees which have smaller leaves to trap dust particles eg  Amla,tamrind ,Shishir ,Neem and gulmohar.

Best regards

Ranju Minhas