DIGITAL ASSIGNMENT-1

Technical Answers for Real World Problems (TARP)

MEE3999

Submitted to - Submitted by –

Prof. Dr. YAGNA S MUKKAMALA Prakarsh Mittal

17BME0461

Air pollution refers to the release of pollutants into the air

that are detrimental to human health and the planet as a
whole. It is a mixture of solid particles and gases in the air. Car
emissions, chemicals from factories, dust, pollen and mold
spores may be suspended as particles. Ozone, a gas, is a major
part of air pollution in cities. When ozone forms air pollution,
it's also called smog. It occurs when harmful or excessive
quantities of substances are introduced into Earth's
atmosphere. Sources of air pollution include gases (such
as ammonia, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides,
methane and chlorofluorocarbons), particulates (both organic
and inorganic), and biological molecules. It may cause
diseases, allergies and even death to humans; it may also
cause harm to other living organisms such as animals and food
crops, and may damage the natural or built environment. Both
human activity and natural processes can generate air
pollution.

There are four main types of air pollution sources:

 Mobile Sources – such as cars, buses, planes, trucks, and
trains
 Stationary Sources – such as power plants, oil refineries,
industrial facilities, and factories
 Area Sources – such as agricultural areas, cities, and
wood burning fireplaces
 Natural Sources – such as wind-blown dust, wildfires, and
volcanoes
Main air pollutants are:
1) Sulphur oxides (SOx) – Mainly Sulphur dioxide (SO2). It is
one of the causes for concern over the environmental impact of
the use of fuels as power sources.

2) Nitrogen oxides (NOx) - NO2 is one of the most prominent

air pollutants. Nitrogen (N) compounds, emitted as NOX and
NH3, are now the principal acidifying components in our air and
cause eutrophication of ecosystems.

3) Particulate matter - Particulates, alternatively referred to as

particulate matter (PM) or fine particles, are tiny particles of
solid or liquid suspended in a gas. Human activities, such as
the burning of fossil fuels in vehicles, power plants and various
industrial processes also generate significant amounts of
aerosols.

4) Ozone (O3) - Ozone is not directly emitted into the

atmosphere but formed from a chain of photochemical
reactions following emissions of precursor gases: nitrogen
oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO) and volatile organic
compounds (VOC).

5) Carbon monoxide (CO) - It is a product by incomplete

combustion of fuel such as natural gas, coal or wood. Vehicular
exhaust is a major source of carbon monoxide.

6) Carbon dioxide (CO2) - emitted from sources such as

combustion, cement production, and respiration.

7) Heavy metals, such as arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead

(Pb) and nickel (Ni)

8) Benzene and benzo(a)pyrene

9) Ammonia (NH3) - emitted from agricultural processes.

10) Volatile organic compounds - VOCs are an important

outdoor air pollutants
Air Pollution Effects:
Local effects:

Effects on humans:
- Deaths from respiratory diseases

- Other diseases such as heart disease, throat, eyes, blood

disorders and cancer

- Genetic disorders and transfer the impact to the next

generation

- Chronic fatigue

Impact on the environment:

- Vegetation damage

- Reduce biodiversity

- Damage to the soil

– Corrosion

Global effects:
- Increasing Greenhouse effect

- Global warming

- Climate change

- Acid rain
There are 5 main methods of sampling air
quality:

1. Passive Monitoring

 Diffusion tubes absorb a specific pollutant from the ambient

air - no power supply is needed
 Diffusion tubes normally monitor for 2-4 weeks at a time
 The tubes must be sent to a laboratory for analysis to see
how much pollution they have detected

2. Active (Semi Automatic) Sampling

 An analyser pulls the ambient air through a filter for a set

period of time e.g one filter per day
 The filters are then collected and sent to a laboratory for
analysis to see how much pollution they have detected

3. Automatic point monitoring

 Ambient air is pulled through an analyser which recognises

the chosen gas and will calculate its concentration
 Automatic sites monitor pollutants 24hours a day
 Data is sent from the site directly to your computer which
means it can be seen instantly

4. Photochemical and optical sensor systems

 These are portable monitoring tools that can continuously

monitor a range of pollutants. The sensors are of low
sensitivity and mostly suitable for identifying hotspots at
roadsides and near point sources.
 Data can be downloaded to your computer and analysed.
5. Remote optical/long-path monitoring

 This method of sampling detects pollution between a a light

source and a detector which are placed separately at a site
 Real time measurements can be taken with this type of
sampling.
 Data can be sent from the analyser directly to your
computer which means it can be seen instantly

Initiatives taken by different countries to

control air pollution:

India:
India’s recently released, much-anticipated National Clean Air
Program (NCAP) provides a roadmap to prevent, control, and
reduce unhealthy air pollution. Dr Harsh Vardhan, Minister for
Environment, Forests and Climate Change launched the NCAP
last week. With the alarming air pollution levels across India
the urgency of the plan is clear. India is severely affected by
air pollution; it led to 1.24 million or 12.5% of the total deaths
recorded in the country during 2017 alone.

The NCAP will expand the national air quality monitoring

network, build capacity for air pollution management, and
strengthen public awareness about the dangers of air pollution.
It is a time-bound, national strategy to bring down levels of
deadly particle air pollution (PM2.5 and PM10) by 20-30% by
2024 (compared to 2017 levels).

Under the NCAP, city-specific action plans will be developed for

all 102 cities that exceed national air quality safeguards.
The NCAP also provides specific sectoral interventions for
mitigation actions for key sectors that are known to contribute
to air pollution in many cities. These include re-suspended road
dust control, construction and demolition related dust, power
sector and industrial emissions, transport sector emissions,
agricultural emissions, emissions from unsustainable waste
management practices.
China
From 2013 to 2017, with the implementation of the toughest-
ever clean air policy in China, significant declines in fine
particle (PM2.5) concentrations occurred nationwide. Here we
estimate the drivers of the improved PM2.5 air quality and the
associated health benefits in China from 2013 to 2017 based
on a measure-specific integrated evaluation approach, which
combines a bottom-up emission inventory, a chemical
transport model, and epidemiological exposure-response
functions. The estimated national population–weighted annual
mean PM2.5 concentrations decreased from 61.8 (95%CI:
53.3–70.0) to 42.0 µg/m3 (95% CI: 35.7–48.6) in 5 y, with
dominant contributions from anthropogenic emission
abatements. Although interannual meteorological variations
could significantly alter PM2.5 concentrations, the
corresponding effects on the 5-y trends were relatively small.
The measure-by-measure evaluation indicated that
strengthening industrial emission standards (power plants and
emission-intensive industrial sectors), upgrades on industrial
boilers, phasing out outdated industrial capacities, and
promoting clean fuels in the residential sector were major
effective measures in reducing PM2.5 pollution and health
burdens. These measures were estimated to contribute to 6.6-
(95% CI: 5.9–7.1), 4.4- (95% CI: 3.8–4.9), 2.8- (95% CI:
2.5–3.0), and 2.2- (95% CI: 2.0–2.5) µg/m3 declines in the
national PM2.5 concentration in 2017, respectively, and further
reduced PM2.5-attributable excess deaths by 0.37 million (95%
CI: 0.35–0.39), or 92% of the total avoided deaths. Our study
confirms the effectiveness of China’s recent clean air actions,
and the measure-by-measure evaluation provides insights into
future clean air policy making in China and in other developing
and polluting countries.
South California
There are a huge number of vehicles on the road, plus a busy
port with thousands of trucks. This created a high baseline to
start from, with emission reductions making a big difference
collectively. In addition, by the 1990s stationary sources were
already well controlled. Sources such as power plants are under
local jurisdiction, and agencies such as SCAQMD enforced
regulations. In addition, Southern California has no coal
burning power plants, which create large amounts of
emissions. These are factors that made the on-road vehicle
regulations successful.
 Selected clean air policies implemented between 1990 and
today:

 On-road vehicle emissions efforts, including the Low Emission

Vehicle program (CARB) and the heavy-duty diesel vehicle
emission standard reductions (CARB). These policies originated
with the Federal Clean Act of 1970.
 California Clean Air Act of 1988
 SCAQMD: Air Quality Management Plan, which required
introduction of zero-emission vehicles and Technology
Advancement Program, 1988.
 Regional Clean Air Incentives Markets Program (RECLAIM) (SC-
AQMD), early 1990s.
 Diesel particulate matter (DPM) named a toxic air contaminant
in 1998. This led to the diesel risk reduction plan and new
standards for all on-road, off-road, and stationary diesel-fueled
engines and the sulfur content of diesel fuel, 2000 (CARB).
 San Pedro Bay Ports Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP), 2006.
 Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment
program (heavy duty engines) (CARB)

United States of America

Clean air act is applicable in USA for reducing and preventing
air pollution. Two amendments have been made to the act
since then:

Clean Air Act of 1970

The enactment of the Clean Air Act of 1970 (1970 CAA)

resulted in a major shift in the federal government's role in air
pollution control. This legislation authorized the development of
comprehensive federal and state regulations to limit emissions
from both stationary (industrial) sources and mobile sources.
Four major regulatory programs affecting stationary sources
were initiated: the National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(NAAQS, pronounced "knacks"), State Implementation Plans
(SIPs), New Source Performance Standards (NSPS), and
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants
(NESHAPs). Furthermore, the enforcement authority was
substantially expanded. The adoption of this very important
legislation occurred at approximately the same time as the
National Environmental Policy Act that established the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA was created
on December 2, 1970 in order to implement the various
requirements included in these Acts

Clean Air Act Amendments of 1977

Major amendments were added to the Clean Air Act in 1977

(1977 CAAA). The 1977 Amendments primarily concerned
provisions for the Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD)
of air quality in areas attaining the NAAQS. The 1977 CAAA
also contained requirements pertaining to sources in non-
attainment areas for NAAQS. A non-attainment area is a
geographic area that does not meet one or more of the federal
air quality standards. Both of these 1977 CAAA established
major permit review requirements to ensure attainment and
maintenance of the NAAQS.

Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990

Another set of major amendments to the Clean Air Act occurred

in 1990 (1990 CAAA). The 1990 CAAA substantially increased
the authority and responsibility of the federal government. New
regulatory programs were authorized for control of acid
deposition (acid rain) and for the issuance of stationary source
operating permits. The NESHAPs were incorporated into a
greatly expanded program for controlling toxic air pollutants.
The provisions for attainment and maintenance of NAAQS were
substantially modified and expanded. Other revisions included
provisions regarding stratospheric ozone protection, increased
enforcement authority, and expanded research programs.
Russia

The Human Rights Council under the President of Russia

has proposed restrictions such as low emission zones for
vehicles below the heavily polluting Euro-3 emissions standard.
This is a step in the right direction in an effort to tackle air
pollution in Moscow and other major cities. The Russian
government has already instructed the authorities of Moscow
and St. Petersburg to develop a road map for the
implementation of these measures. In autumn 2017,
Greenpeace Russia handed over a revolutionary scenario for
the development of the transport system of the capital to the
Government of Moscow — one of its most important
components was the introduction of low emission zones. Under
this plan, air pollution from nitrogen dioxide and carbon
dioxide emissions from vehicles will be reduced by a quarter.

European Union

The 1997 EU acidification strategy came to involve a revision

and tightening of two important directives: the first
for controlling the sulphur content of liquid fuels and the second
for emissions from large combustion plants (LCP directive).

The more strategically oriented work on air quality that was

initiated in the nineties was followed up by the Clean Air For
Europe (CAFE) Programme and the 2005 Thematic Strategy on
Air Pollution.

The Clean Air for Europe (CAFE) programme was launched by

the European Commission in 2001, with the aim of reviewing
the EU’s air quality policies and assessing progress towards
attainment of the EU's long-term air quality objectives, as laid
down in the Sixth Environment Action Programme.

The CAFE programme set highest priority to dealing with fine

particles (PM) and ground-level ozone, both because of their
serious effects on health and the fact that much would have to
be done if concentrations were to be brought down to
acceptable levels. Other outstanding air pollutant problems,
such as acidification and eutrophication, were also given high
attention.

There were four main components in Commission’s 2013 clean

air policy package:

 A Commission communication on a ―Clean Air Programme

for Europe‖, a strategy document with measures aimed at
meeting already existing targets in the short term (up to
2020), and new air quality objectives for the period up to
2030, also including supporting measures to improve air
quality in cities, support to research and innovation, and
the promoting of international cooperation;
 A main legislative proposal to revise the National Emission
Ceilings (NEC) directive, setting new country-by-country
emission reduction requirements up to 2030 for six main
air pollutants;
 A proposal for a new directive to reduce pollution from
medium-sized combustion plants (MCP), such as local
heating plants for smaller districts and small industrial
installations; and,
 A proposal to transpose into EU law the international
emission reductions for 2020 that the EU has committed
to under the 2012 Gothenburg Protocol of the Convention
on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP).

Paris Agreement

The Paris Agreement is a landmark environmental accord that

was adopted by nearly every nation in 2015 to address climate
change and its negative impacts. The deal aims to substantially
reduce global greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to limit the
global temperature increase in this century to 2 degrees
Celsius above preindustrial levels, while pursuing means to
limit the increase to 1.5 degrees. The agreement
includes commitments from all major emitting countries to cut
their climate-altering pollution and to strengthen those
commitments over time. The pact provides a pathway for
developed nations to assist developing nations in their climate
mitigation and adaptation efforts, and it creates a framework
for the transparent monitoring, reporting, and ratcheting up of
countries’ individual and collective climate goals.

At present, 197 countries—every nation on earth, with the last

signatory being war-torn Syria—have adopted the Paris
Agreement. Of those, 179 have solidified their climate
proposals with formal approval—including the United States,
for now. The only major emitting countries that have yet to
formally join the agreement are Russia, Turkey, and Iran.
References
https://www.nrdc.org/experts/anjali-jaiswal/india-launches-national-clean-air-
program

https://www.pnas.org/content/116/49/24463

https://envhealthcenters.usc.edu/2015/04/most-effective-air-quality-policies-a-
study-of-the-past-20-years.html

https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/evolution-clean-air-act

https://www.greenpeace.org/international/story/21932/how-russian-cities-are-
cleaning-up-their-air/

https://www.airclim.org/eu-air-pollution-policy

https://www.nrdc.org/stories/paris-climate-agreement-everything-you-need-
know

https://risctox.istas.net/en/index.asp?idpagina=615

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_pollution#Regulations

https://www.loc.gov/law/help/air-pollution/china.php

https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-solutions-of-air-
pollution.php

https://phys.org/news/2016-04-air-pollution.html

https://www.nrdc.org/stories/air-pollution-everything-you-need-know

https://medlineplus.gov/airpollution.html#:~:text=Air%20pollution%20is%20a
%20mixture,Some%20air%20pollutants%20are%20poisonous.

https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/air-pollution-current-and-future-
challenges

http://cleartheair.scottishairquality.scot/about/how-do-we-monitor

https://www.nps.gov/subjects/air/sources.htm#:~:text=There%20are%20four
%20main%20types,cities%2C%20and%20wood%20burning%20fireplaces