Vadodara air losing freshness

VADODARA: Breathing fresh air in Vadodara may be easier than three other major cities of Gujarat that are battling increasing air pollution. But, authorities can't afford to take it easy.

After significant improvement in air quality around 2010, the air pollution levels in the city are again showing a steady increase. Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) data reveals a steady increase in pollutants between 2011 and 2014. Though not alarming, constant one microgram increase of pollutants in per cubic unit of air every year will become a matter of concern in future if steps are not taken, experts say.

"The minor increases in pollutant levels will generate environment issues in the future if they are not tackled in time. Every unit increase of suspended particulate matter in the air increases the level of respirable pollutants, prolonged exposure to which will create problems if the steady rise continues," said Arun Arya, officiating head of MS University's department of environmental sciences.

Urbanization and increased vehicular population can only add to the increase.

GPCB authorities claimed that the drop in pollutants around 2010 was a direct consequence of the Vadodara City Air Action Plan which was introduced in 2008-09. "In comparison to other cities, the expansion of Vadodara was faster at that time. Number of vehicles and felling of trees spiked up around 2000s and the pollution levels also went high. The action plan was initiated to prevent the condition from aggravating," said GPCB regional director Neeraj Shah.

"Promoting vehicles fueled by compressed natural gas (CNG), stricter rules of pollution control certificates (PUC) for vehicles and regular surprise inspections of industrial units among various other steps helped in bringing down the pollution levels. We have maintained the levels successfully," Shah said.

According to Shah, the subsequent increase that has been recorded is largely owing to the vehicular population and the construction of bridges across the city. "Vadodara is still only a moderately polluted city in the state. Most of the suspended particulate matter that we have now is dry dust and cement particles from construction sites," he said.

The pollution levels in Vadodara are among the lowest among four major urban centers - including Ahmedabad, Surat and Rajkot. Ahmedabad recorded the highest air pollution. Rajkot was a close second, while Surat's air pollutions were a slightly higher than Vadodara in 2013-14.