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2020 के लॉकडाउन के दौरान घटे प्रदूषण के स्तर में फिर से उछाल आने का खतरा : सीएसई

नई दिल्ली: इस वर्ष प्रदूषण के स्तर में वृद्धि है, क्योंकि 2020 में महामारी के कठिन दौर में कई चरणों में लॉकडाउन लगाया गया था, जिसका प्रदूषण पर सकारात्मक प्रभाव पड़ा था। यह बात सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (सीएसई) द्वारा किए गए क्षेत्रीय प्रदूषण प्रवृत्तियों के नए विश्लेषण से पता चली है। सीएसई में अनुसंधान विभाग की कार्यकारी निदेशक अनुमिता रॉयचौधरी ने कहा, 2019-2021 की अवधि के लिए वास्तविक समय वायु गुणवत्ता डेटा के इस विश्लेषण से पता चलता है कि प्रदूषण में गिरावट जो 2020 में महामारी के कठिन लॉकडाउन चरणों से प्रेरित थी, 2021 में पहले से ही बढ़ रहे स्तरों के साथ फिर से उछाल की चेतावनी दे रही है। हालांकि कई मामलों में प्रदूषण का स्तर अभी भी 2019 से कम है। नतीजतन, भारत के पूर्वी राज्य यानी बिहार, पश्चिम बंगाल और ओडिशा - अब बढ़ते वायु प्रदूषण का दंश महसूस कर रहे हैं, जैसा कि अध्ययन में दिखाया गया है। नवंबर की शुरुआत में उत्तर भारत को घेरने वाला शीतकालीन स्मॉग दिसंबर के अंत और जनवरी की शुरुआत में पूर्व की ओर बढ़ने लगता है, जिससे बिहार, पश्चिम बंगाल और ओडिशा ज्यादा प्रभावित होते हैं। अर्बन डेटा एनालिटिक्स लैब, सीएसई के प्रोग्राम मैनेजर अविकल सोमवंशी ने कहा, इन राज्यों में वायु गुणवत्ता पर अधिक ताजा और वास्तविक जानकारी देने के लिए वायु गुणवत्ता निगरानी का विस्तार शुरू हो गया है। लापता डेटा और अंतराल के बारे में गंभीर चिंताएं हैं, जो उचित जोखिम मूल्यांकन को मुश्किल बनाती हैं। बिहार के कुछ स्टेशनों और ओडिशा में डेटा उपलब्धता इतनी कम है कि प्रवृत्ति का आकलन नहीं किया जा सकता। डेटा का गुणवत्ता नियंत्रण आवश्यक है।

CSE analysis shows pollution bouncing back in West Bengal, Bihar and Odisha after a short decline due to pandemic disruption

It is January, and the eastern states of India – Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha — are now feeling the sting of increased winter air pollution, says a new analysis of regional pollution trends done by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The winter smog that engulfs North India during early November begins to extend eastwards during late December and early January. Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha are affected mostly during this time when winter inversion and the cool and calm conditions trap the local pollution that is already high. “This analysis of real time air quality data for the period 2019-2021 shows that the downward dip in pollution that was induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020 is threatening to bounce back with the levels in 2021 already rising. But in many cases, the levels are still lower than 2019. This underscores the urgency of scaling up action across all sectors to prevent further worsening and to arrest the trend in this region,” says Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at CSE. “Even though real time air quality monitoring has begun to expand in these states to provide more up to date and real time information on air quality, there are serious concerns around missing data and gaps that makes proper risk assessment difficult. In some stations of Bihar and Odisha, data availability is so low that the trend cannot be assessed. Quality control of data is necessary,” says Avikal Somvanshi, programme manager at Urban Data Analytics Lab, CSE. This new analysis of real time pollution data by CSE is a part of the air quality tracker initiative of the Urban Data Analytics Lab of CSE. The objective of this new analysis is to understand the trend and magnitude of pollution in different regions that have real time air quality monitoring systems. This is an assessment of annual and seasonal trends in PM2.5 concentration for the period January 1, 2019 to January 4, 2022. This analysis is based on the real time data available from the current working air quality monitoring stations. A huge volume of data points have been cleaned and data gaps have been addressed based on the USEPA (United States Environment Protection Agency) method for this analysis. This analysis covers 29 continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS) spread across 12 cities in the three states: West Bengal — seven stations in Kolkata, three stations in Howrah, and one station each in Asansol, Siliguri, Durgapur, Haldia; Bihar – six stations in Patna, three stations in Gaya, three stations in Muzaffarpur and one in Hajipur; Odisha — one real time station each in Talcher and Brajrajnagar. Even though there are more real time monitors in a few other cities of these states, those could not be considered due to data gaps and lack of quality data. Moreover, in several cases the real time monitors have been set up recently and therefore long term data is not available. Several cities of Bihar have got their real time monitors between July and November 2021. There are two stations in Bhagalpur and one station each in Bettiah, Bihar Sharif, Darbhanga, Motihari, Araria, Arrah, Buxar, Chhapra, Katihar, Kishanganj, Manguraha, Munger, Purnia, Rajgir, Saharsa, Sasaram, and Siwan. But due to excessive amount of missing data from these stations meaningful analysis has not been possible. Hajipur in Bihar has data availability for over two years. In West Bengal, real time monitors in Durgapur and Haldia became operational only near the end of 2020 which limits the possibility of doing long term trend analysis for these cities. Odisha has very limited real time monitoring. Therefore, data is indicative of the current status of air quality and seasonal variation in particulate pollution in medium and smaller cities. The key findings Challenge of data gaps and quality despite automation: Review of data availability from the automated monitoring stations in the region under the Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) programme of CPCB, shows major data gaps. Data availability calculated as number of days with adequate data for computation of a valid 24hr-average has been low in five of the 12 cities in the region. For the year 2021 (January to December) data availability at Kareemganj station of Gaya and MIT station of Muzaffarpur has been just 10 per cent and 8 per cent respectively. Stations at Fort William in Kolkata, Bajrajnagar in Odisha and IGSC in Patna fare better with 63 per cent, 56 per cent, and 49 per cent data availability respectively. Most stations of West Bengal perform better as they have data availability of more than 95 per cent. Stations at Talcher in Odisha, and Collectorate in Gaya meet the minimum 80 per cent data availability requirement. In contrast the CAAQMS stations at Rajbansi Nagar in Patna have 100 per cent data availability. It is not clear why these stations have such poor data availability but it probably has to do with poor electricity and internet connectivity in the region. This requires an assessment. However, several other stations in Kolkata, Howrah, Siliguri, and Durgapur in West Bengal; and a few in Patna, Gaya, and Muzaffarpur in Bihar show between 95-100 per cent availability with some variation. Most cities show a rising trend in annual PM2.5 levels after an initial drop during 2020 with more pandemic related lockdown phases: Nearly all cities in the region show a drop in annual average PM2.5 level in 2020 that was also the year with maximum lockdown phases. But there is a rebound and a rising trend once again in 2021 though in several cases the levels are lower than the 2019 level. Durgapur, a big industrial hub of West Bengal that is also designated as a critically polluted area by CPCB, has the most polluted air in the region with 2021 average at 80 ug/m3. This is followed by Muzaffarpur and Patna with 2021 annual average of PM2.5 at 78 ug/m3 and 73 ug/m3 respectively. If the real time data is taken as an indicator, in West Bengal, Durgapur needs to reduce annual average PM2.5 by 50 per cent to meet the annual PM2.5 standard, Howrah 34 per cent, Asansol 32 per cent, Siliguri 32 per cent, Kolkata 28 per cent. Haldia met the standard in 2021. In Bihar, Muzaffarpur needs reduction in annual average PM2.5 level by close to 49 per cent to meet the standard, Patna 45 per cent, Hajipur 33 per cent, Gaya 18 per cent. Odisha is the only state where Bajrajnagar and Talcher have met the annual standard with average. The cities in eastern region did not experience ‘severe’ days during 2021 but the share of ‘poor’ and ‘very poor’ days are high: During 2021 severely polluted days have not been noted in any city. Share of very poor days has been highest in Muzaffarpur at 93 in Bihar followed by Durgapur at 71 in West Bengal, Patna with 67 days in Bihar and Howrah with 58 days in West Bengal. Days with poor air quality is highest in Durgapur at 71 followed by 67 in Patna, 53 in Kolkata and 51 in Howrah. These bad air quality days are concentrated during winter months. The overall number of ‘good’ and ‘satisfactory’ air quality days have also increased during the pandemic. Bad air days begin to build up around the same time in the cities of eastern states that end of December During but it seems it persists longer in some cities like Siliguri, Durgapur, and Patna. In the next rung are Muzaffarpur and Howrah. High weekly pollution episode during winter can be more than double the annual concentration in several cities: During the worst weekly pollution episode in winter the PM2.5 concentration can increase significantly higher than the annual PM2.5 average – about two times high in several cities. During the high pollution episodes weekly PM2.5 levels can go as high as 213 ug/m3 as recorded in Muzaffarpur in December 2021. This winter so far the highest weekly level has recorded 171 ug/m3 in Durgapur, 166 ug/m3 in Patna, 148 ug/m3 in Howrah, 137 ug/m3 Hajipur, 118 ug/m3 in Kolkata, and 114 ug/m3 in Asansol. The levels are marginally lower this winter compared to last winter except in Hajipur which shows 1.8 times increase comparing to previous winters. Changing ratio of PM2.5:PM10 during different seasons of 2021: The PM2.5/PM10 ratio is a useful indicator to understand the impact of coarse dust vs tinier dust from combustion sources on air quality. Higher share of smaller particles in total particle concentration makes the air more toxic. The indicative ratio for all cities show there is a seasonal variation. The share of smaller PM2.5 is higher than the coarser PM10 in monsoon and winter. The long-term variation of the PM2.5/PM10 ratio was analyzed from weekly data average for three different seasons: Summer (March – May), monsoon (June – October), and winter (November – January). The PM2.5/PM10 ratio in all the cities of West Bengal has an increasing slope from summer to winter except Siliguri, which is showing high percentage of PM2.5/PM10 ratio in summers with 58 per cent and then gradually dropping to 50 per cent in monsoon which again spikes to 52 per cent in winter. Mostly, the concentration of PM2.5/PM10 ratio is higher during winter’s months (November to January) hovering around 53 per cent in West Bengal cities. This is indicative and there can be variation across years. However, this trend is broadly consistent with what has been noted in parts of the country. In Bihar, Gaya has the highest PM2.5/PM10 ratio in all the three seasons with the PM2.5 share as high as 73 per cent in winter. Hajipur is showing high percentage of PM2.5/PM10 ratio in monsoon with 51 per cent and then dropping to 47 per cent in winter. Overall in Bihar the concentration of PM2.5/PM10 ratio is higher during winter (November to January) hovering around 55 per cent. Brajrajnagar in Odisha has data gaps for the month from September to October. Therefore, this station has not been included in this analysis. Winter pollution can be a toxic cocktail of particulate and gases: There is a significant increase in amount of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in air of all cities of eastern states during December compared to the previous months of November, October and September. Brajrajnagar registered 3.6 times jump in monthly NO2 level, Kolkata registered a 2.8 times increase while Patna, Talcher, and Asansol registered a 2.5 times increase. In absolute concentration term, Patna registered the highest monthly average of 51 µg/m3 for December. It is followed by Kolkata (50 µg/m3) and Talcher (44 µg/m3). Muzaffarpur, Howrah and Hazipur showed increase in amount of NO2 in month of November as compared to December. NO2 levels corelate well with traffic peaks in cities: All cities show peaking of hourly NO2 concentration between 6pm and 8pm which coincides with evening rush hour in the cities. Hourly NO2 in Siliguri increases four-folds between noon and 7pm. The NO2 cycle is equally sharp in Muzaffarpur and Asansol with 3.5-3 times increase noted at evening compared to the afternoon. All cities have a morning NO2 peak around 7-8am but this is relatively lower` than the evening peak. In Patna and Kolkata high NO2 levels persist up till midnight indicating presence of pollution from night-time truck movement in the city. Conclusion and the way ahead The eastern region that spans across middle and low Indo Gangetic Plains experiences winter smog towards the end of December and early January. Pollution trapping can be high during adverse winter conditions as the overall pollution level in cities are high. The region is already experiencing rebound of pollution after the temporary dip in 2020 due to the pandemic linked hard lockdown phases. The city and state action plans in the concerned states require stronger multi-sector interventions to reduce pollution in a time bound manner and to meet the national ambient air quality standards. Scale up access to clean fuel and technology in industry and power plants, transform public transport, walking and cycling at a scale, address old vehicles and speed up electrification of new fleet, amend municipal bylaws and scale up infrastructure for management and recycling of all waste streams, eliminate solid fuel for cooking, control dust from construction sector and adopt greening and afforestation strategy for dousing dust. This agenda is non-negotiable to meet the clean air target. (Report sent by Pratyusha Mukherjee)

Pollution levels could rise again after 2020 lockdown-induced dip: Study

With the levels of pollution rising this year, the downward dip, induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020, will not persist, a new analysis of regional pollution trends showed With the levels of pollution rising this year, the downward dip, induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020, will not persist, a new analysis of regional pollution trends done by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) showed. "This analysis of real time air quality data for the period 2019-2021 shows that the downward dip in pollution that was induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020 is threatening to bounce back with the levels in 2021 already rising. But in many cases, the levels are still lower than 2019. This underscores the urgency of scaling up action across all sectors to prevent further worsening and to arrest the trend in this region," said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at CSE. As a result, the eastern states of India i.e. Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha -- are now feeling the sting of increased winter air pollution, the study showed. As the winter smog that engulfs north India during early November begins to extend eastwards during late December and early January, Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha are affected mostly during this time when winter inversion and the cool and calm conditions trap the local pollution that is already high. "Even though real time air quality monitoring has begun to expand in these states to provide more up to date and real time information on air quality, there are serious concerns around missing data and gaps that makes proper risk assessment difficult. In some stations of Bihar and Odisha, data availability is so low that the trend cannot be assessed. Quality control of data is necessary," said Avikal Somvanshi, programme manager at Urban Data Analytics Lab, CSE. This new analysis of real-time pollution data by the CSE is a part of the air quality tracker initiative of its Urban Data Analytics Lab, whose objective is to understand the trend and magnitude of pollution in different regions that have real-time air quality monitoring systems. This is an assessment of annual and seasonal trends in PM2.5 concentration for the period January 1, 2019, to January 4, 2022, which covers 29 continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS) spread across 12 cities in the above mentioned three states.

Delhi: Over 63mm rainfall in just 3 days makes it wettest January in 27 years

NEW DELHI: The city logged 63.6mm of rainfall in the last three days, making it the wettest January in the past 27 years. Before this, Safdarjung, the city's base weather station, had received 69.8mm of rainfall in January 1995. The rain also cleaned the air with air quality index (AQI) remaining in the "satisfactory" category for 48 hours. It was the first January to experience a "satisfactory" air day since Central Pollution Control Board started maintaining AQI from April 2015. Two "satisfactory" days in January this year also made it rarer. The AQI was 91 on Saturday, which improved to 69 on Sunday. RK Jenamani, senior scientist at IMD, said, "Under the influence of the most active western disturbance of this season, Delhi received rain for two and a half days. This western disturbance was unique because of three factors - it remained for a longer period over north Pakistan and adjoining plains, vertical extension of the system was stronger and extended up to the upper troposphere and it picked very high moisture from Arabian Sea." Safdarjung recorded 5.4mm rainfall on Sunday between 8.30am and 5.30pm. Narela received the highest rainfall (12.1mm), while Lodhi Road logged 5.6mm. Rain was now unlikely till January 18. Delhi recorded the lowest maximum temperature of the season at 15 degrees Celsius, four notches below normal. The minimum temperature settled at 13.8 degrees Celsius, seven degrees above normal. "The day and night temperatures remained almost the same for 48 hours. There was a marginal difference in minimum and maximum temperatures due to the western disturbance," said Jenamani. Gufran Beig, founder project director, SAFAR, said. "Due to unprecedented rain in January, AQI has been unusually low since Saturday. It's rare that two consecutive satisfactory days were recorded in January." SAFAR said, "From Monday, air pollutants may gradually accumulate in the air in the absence of rainfall and relatively moderate ventilation. AQI is likely to be satisfactory on Monday and degrade to moderate on January 11 and 12 due to low wind speeds." Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy, Centre for Science and Environment, said, "Rain and improved wind speed washed out the pollutants. We will have to see how pollution bounces back after the rain stops and moisture content increases, while the cold conditions continue to prevail."

Tread Carefully: Draft Notification Wants Tyre Companies to Take Charge of Waste

Of the 1.5 billion+ waste tyres that are generated every year worldwide, 6% are in India. That, according to one estimate, is how many rubber tyres India discards every day. The Union environment ministry’s new draft notification, published on December 31, 2021, proposes to regulate the disposal of such waste tyres by enforcing the extended producer responsibility (EPR). This policy extends the responsibility of the producer, or importer, to include the disposal of waste tyres, and frees consumers from having to worry about responsible disposal. According to the notification, manufacturers and importers of tyres, including waste tyres, will have to ensure that all their products are recycled in line with the government’s standards, and they will have until 2024 to start complying. India is the world’s third largest producer and fourth largest consumer of natural rubber. Within the country, the automobile industry is the largest consumer, according to one report. Business Standard reported that India produces 6.5 lakh tyres every day. With the rate of growth of the automobile industry, this number is only set to increase. An “environmental research and action group” called Chintan reported in 2017 that by 2035, there will be around 80.1 million passenger vehicles (cars and utility vehicles) and 236.4 million two wheelers on the roads. Of the 1.5 billion+ waste tyres that are generated every year worldwide, 6% are in India. In addition, India also imports around three lakh tonnes of tyres to recycle every year. They are subject to thermochemical treatments in high temperature to produce industrial oil and other derivatives. Pollution from these sources is a big concern. In 2019, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) ordered 270 tyre pyrolysis units in 19 states to shut, after finding that the units were flouting environmental norms and were responsible for high levels of pollution. The same year, following a plea by an NGO, the National Green Tribunal asked the CPCB to create a comprehensive plan to address waste-tyre management in the country, and to look to restrict the import of waste tyres. The new EPR regime The environment ministry’s new draft notification, to extend EPR to include for waste tyres, aims to address these concerns. According to the notification, the ministry appointed an expert committee that included representatives of the NITI Aayog, CPCB and the All India Rubber and Tyre Recyclers Association, among others. The committee had been tasked with preparing a comprehensive action plan to manage the disposal of waste tyres. After meetings with stakeholders and inputs from the committee, the ministry developed a report on tyre scrap, which also included recommendations on EPR, and submitted it to the NITI Aayog in August 2021. According to the new draft notification, by 2024-2025, all manufacturers and importers of new tyres will need to recycle all their products, starting with recycling 35% and then 75% of their products for the first two years, and achieving 100% by 2024. The notification also bans the import of waste tyres for the sole purpose of producing pyrolysis oil or char. Additionally, all producers and importers will have to register with the CPCB and obtain an ‘EPR certificate’ in favour of a registered recycler for all the products they recycle. Recyclers, including facilities that engage in pyrolysis, will have to provide monthly updates to the CPCB on the quantity of waste tyres used, end products produced and EPR certificates sold in this regard. The CPCB has also been tasked with setting guidelines to impose and collect environmental compensation from producers and recyclers if they don’t comply with these regulations or use false EPR certificates. If approved – the draft notification will be open for comments for two months – the rules, as part of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986, will be effective from the next financial year, 2022-2023. ‘Polluter pays’ A law to change the way tyre manufacturers operate has been in the works for a few years as well. The environment ministry considered a draft to this end in 2017, but it is unclear if anything has come of it. Legislation to tackle the issue of waste tyres would be a “step towards the right direction” for it makes the industry accountable to the environment, a director at J.K. Tyres had told Business Standard in 2017, when the ministry was still mulling the draft. According to a 2021 study, many countries have adopted the EPR system to make producers responsible for managing their products until the post-consumer stage. It is the most common tyre waste management system in the European Union, for example. Developing countries have adopted it as well: Ecuador established an EPR policy for waste tyres from cars, trucks and buses in 2013. One 2019 study found that introducing EPR to tackle waste tyres could reduce illegal stockpiling of waste tyres and increase resource efficiency by increasing recycling. However, it also maintained that an EPR system could be no guarantee for waste treatment in the most “environmentally sound way”, because an EPR system will only achieve its objectives if it is properly designed, implemented and enforced. Also in many developing countries, the EPR system has been mostly implemented to tackle electronic waste. In India, the Plastic Waste Management Rules 2016 introduced the concept of EPR – in which the polluter pays – to manage plastic waste in India, Siddharth Ghanshyam Singh, deputy programme manager of municipal solid waste at the Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi, wrote in December 2021. This hasn’t translated into action on the ground, he added. In October 2021, the environment ministry also released a draft EPR policy to manage plastic waste in India. While this was an important move, it neglected several “basic elements of EPR for efficient waste management,” Singh wrote: it didn’t address minimising waste or include the informal waste management sector.

Zero the way to go

Over the past few years there has been a rapid shift in the strategy for waste management in the country India is rapidly evolving its policies to deal with garbage — the waste generated from the use of material at homes, institutions, and factories. The evolution must now reflect in our actions. Our “waste” must become a resource — to be reworked, reused, and upcycled. This will minimise the use of material in our world and mitigate environmental damage. It’s a win-win solution. We know that the “nature” of solid waste changes as societies get richer and urbanise. Instead of biodegradable (wet) waste, households generate more plastic, paper, metal, and other non-biodegradable (dry) waste. The quantity of waste generated on a per capita basis also increases. Many of the country’s urban areas are already on the trajectory where waste generation has risen exponentially. In 2000, when the first Municipal Solid Wastes Rules were notified, they were based on the idea — prevalent in most countries — that waste had to be collected, transported, and then disposed of in secure landfill sites. The objective was to “clean” cities by removing waste from our vicinity. But this policy failed to reflect in practice and the scourge of garbage grew in our cities. What could not be collected or transported because of paucity of municipal services fouled up our neighbourhoods. What was collected got dumped and is today visible as “mountains” of shame. Over the past few years there has been a rapid shift in the strategy for waste management in the country. Today’s policy, the Union government’s flagship Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) 2.0, focuses on source segregation, processing waste (wet and dry), and minimising the waste sent to sanitary landfill sites. According to the guidelines of SBM 2.0, only the inert waste and process rejects, which in no case should exceed 20 per cent of the total waste and are not suitable for either dry or wet waste treatment, can be sent to landfill sites. Therefore, the premise of the guidelines is that cities must become zero-landfill — they must recover and reprocess all waste. The guidelines stress that waste-to-energy (WtE) projects are financially and operationally viable only with an assured minimum input of 150-200 tonnes per day of non-recyclable, segregated dry waste of high calorific value. This has also been our learning that WtE plants are not the silver bullets they promise to be — incinerating municipal waste to make energy. It is critical that the waste sent for incineration and energy generation is of high quality and this requires a high level of segregation — best done at source. Without this, the plants work below operational capacity and become defunct. The guidelines also provide an opportunity to reclaim the 3,000-odd landfill sites where, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), some 800 million tonnes of waste is dumped. This will not just free up valuable land, which can be greened and put to suitable use, but also help avert environmental disasters. This requires deliberately designed strategies to reuse the material that is bio-mined from these legacy landfills. Cities must also stop sending new waste to these landfills; otherwise they will get filled up again even while being remediated. The good news is that India’s solid waste management strategy is now being designed for material recovery and reuse. It is an approach aimed at a truly circular economy. As the strategy demands full reutilisation of materials and no waste, we will learn what we cannot recycle and work towards minimising its use. This will make policy and practice even more environment-friendly. That said, while the policy has evolved, our practice is still to catch up. Source segregation remains our Achilles’ heel — it does not happen at the scale and pace needed. Even if waste is segregated at household level, it does not get transported in a segregated manner to processing facilities. In fact, processing happens incidentally, only because there are people who need our waste for their livelihoods — ragpickers, as we call them. City managers are still working through the different options for processing this waste and to manage it effectively to generate revenue. Worse, plastic waste — particularly much of the packaging waste — is growing and filling our cities. We still do not acknowledge that much of the “plastic” we use cannot be recycled and so needs to be phased out. The current policy on “single-use” plastics — where certain products have been identified for eventual elimination — is just not good enough to deal with this gigantic problem. What is needed now is to learn the new practice of waste management — and this is best done by understanding what is working and why. This is why the Centre for Science and Environment has partnered the NITI Aayog to document the best practices of “waste-wise” cities as a textbook of new learning and teaching. It is what needs to be practised, and at scale. This is a real opportunity for change.

Pollution levels that dipped during 2020 lockdown threaten to bounce back: CSE

With the levels of pollution rising this year, the downward dip, induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020, will not persist, a new analysis of regional pollution trends done by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) showed. "This analysis of real time air quality data for the period 2019-2021 shows that the downward dip in pollution that was induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020 is threatening to bounce back with the levels in 2021 already rising. But in many cases, the levels are still lower than 2019. This underscores the urgency of scaling up action across all sectors to prevent further worsening and to arrest the trend in this region," said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at CSE. As a result, the eastern states of India i.e. Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha -- are now feeling the sting of increased winter air pollution, the study showed. As the winter smog that engulfs north India during early November begins to extend eastwards during late December and early January, Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha are affected mostly during this time when winter inversion and the cool and calm conditions trap the local pollution that is already high. "Even though real time air quality monitoring has begun to expand in these states to provide more up to date and real time information on air quality, there are serious concerns around missing data and gaps that makes proper risk assessment difficult. In some stations of Bihar and Odisha, data availability is so low that the trend cannot be assessed. Quality control of data is necessary," said Avikal Somvanshi, programme manager at Urban Data Analytics Lab, CSE. This new analysis of real-time pollution data by the CSE is a part of the air quality tracker initiative of its Urban Data Analytics Lab, whose objective is to understand the trend and magnitude of pollution in different regions that have real-time air quality monitoring systems. This is an assessment of annual and seasonal trends in PM2.5 concentration for the period January 1, 2019, to January 4, 2022, which covers 29 continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS) spread across 12 cities in the above mentioned three states.

Pollution levels that dipped during 2020 lockdown threaten to bounce back: CSE

With the levels of pollution rising this year, the downward dip, induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020, will not persist, a new analysis of regional pollution trends done by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) showed. “This analysis of real time air quality data for the period 2019-2021 shows that the downward dip in pollution that was induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020 is threatening to bounce back with the levels in 2021 already rising. But in many cases, the levels are still lower than 2019. This underscores the urgency of scaling up action across all sectors to prevent further worsening and to arrest the trend in this region,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at CSE. As a result, the eastern states of India i.e. Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha — are now feeling the sting of increased winter air pollution, the study showed. As the winter smog that engulfs north India during early November begins to extend eastwards during late December and early January, Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha are affected mostly during this time when winter inversion and the cool and calm conditions trap the local pollution that is already high. “Even though real time air quality monitoring has begun to expand in these states to provide more up to date and real time information on air quality, there are serious concerns around missing data and gaps that makes proper risk assessment difficult. In some stations of Bihar and Odisha, data availability is so low that the trend cannot be assessed. Quality control of data is necessary,” said Avikal Somvanshi, programme manager at Urban Data Analytics Lab, CSE. This new analysis of real-time pollution data by the CSE is a part of the air quality tracker initiative of its Urban Data Analytics Lab, whose objective is to understand the trend and magnitude of pollution in different regions that have real-time air quality monitoring systems. This is an assessment of annual and seasonal trends in PM2.5 concentration for the period January 1, 2019, to January 4, 2022, which covers 29 continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations (CAAQMS) spread across 12 cities in the above mentioned three states.

पश्चिम बंगाल, बिहार और ओडिशा के प्रदूषण में वृद्धि -सीएसई नई दिल्ली द्वारा शीतकालीन वायु प्रदूषण का अध्ययन

विकास कुमार शर्मा, कोलकाता : जनवरी मास के आगमन के तुरंत बाद भारत के पूर्वी राज्यों पश्चिम बंगाल, बिहार एवं ओडिशा में शीतकालीन वायु प्रदूषण का दंश महसूस होने लगा है। विज्ञान और पर्यावरण (सीएसई)। नवंबर की शुरुआत में उत्तर भारत को घेरने वाला शीतकालीन स्मॉग जनवरी की शुरुआत में देश के पूर्वी हिस्से में बढ़ना शुरू कर देता है। इन तीनों राज्यों विशेषकर पश्चिम बंगाल एवं ओडिशा में पहले से मौजूद औद्योगिक प्रदूषण में खासा वृद्धि ठंड के मौसम में हो जाती है। देश की प्रतिष्ठित शोध संस्था सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट द्वारा क्षेत्रीय प्रदूषण को लेकर किये गए एक हालिया अध्ययन में उक्त तथ्य सामने आये हैं। उक्त विश्लेषण में तीन राज्यों के 12 शहरों में फैले 29 निरंतर कंटीन्यूअस एम्बिएंट एयर क्वालिटी मॉनिटरिंग स्टेशन (सीएएक्यूएमएस) को शामिल किया गया है। इनमें पश्चिम बंगाल के कोलकाता में सात, हावड़ा में तीन और आसनसोल, सिलीगुड़ी, दुर्गापुर, हल्दिया में एक-एक स्टेशन सहित बिहार के पटना में छह, गया में तीन, मुजफ्फरपुर में तीन तथा हाजीपुर में एक स्टेशन और ओडिशा के तालचेर और ब्रजराजनगर में एक-एक रीयल टाइम स्टेशन शामिल हैं। हालांकि इन राज्यों के कुछ अन्य शहरों में अधिक रीयल टाइम मॉनिटर हैं, लेकिन डेटा अंतराल और गुणवत्ता डेटा की कमी के कारण उन पर विचार नहीं किया जा सका। इसके अलावा, कई मामलों में रियल टाइम मॉनिटर हाल ही में स्थापित किए गए हैं और इसलिए दीर्घकालिक डेटा उपलब्ध नहीं है। बिहार के कई शहरों को जुलाई और नवंबर 2021 के बीच अपने रियल टाइम मॉनिटर मिल गए हैं। भागलपुर में दो स्टेशन और बेतिया, बिहारशरीफ, दरभंगा, मोतिहारी, अररिया, आरा, बक्सर, छपरा, कटिहार, किशनगंज, मंगुराहा में एक-एक स्टेशन हैं। मुंगेर, पूर्णिया, राजगीर, सहरसा, सासाराम और सीवान। लेकिन इन स्टेशनों से अत्यधिक मात्रा में लापता डेटा के कारण सार्थक विश्लेषण संभव नहीं हो पाया है। बिहार के हाजीपुर में दो साल से अधिक समय से डेटा उपलब्धता है। पश्चिम बंगाल में, दुर्गापुर और हल्दिया में रीयल टाइम मॉनिटर केवल 2020 के अंत में ही चालू हो गए, जो इन शहरों के लिए दीर्घकालिक प्रवृत्ति विश्लेषण करने की संभावना को सीमित करता है। ओडिशा में वास्तविक समय की निगरानी बहुत सीमित है। इसलिए डेटा मध्यम और छोटे शहरों में वायु गुणवत्ता की वर्तमान स्थिति और सूक्ष्म कण प्रदूषण में मौसमी बदलाव का संकेत है। सीइसई की अनुमिता रॉयचौधरी, कार्यकारी निदेशक, सीएसई की मानें तो 2019-2021 की अवधि के लिए वास्तविक समय वायु गुणवत्ता आंकड़ों के इस विश्लेषण से पता चलता है कि प्रदूषण में गिरावट जो 2020 में महामारी के कठिन लॉकडाउन चरणों से प्रेरित थी, वर्ष 2021 में पहले से ही बढ़ रहे स्तरों के साथ वापस उछाल के संकेत दे रही है। साथ ही कई मामलों में, स्तर अभी भी 2019 साल से नीचे हैं। सुश्री रॉय चौधरी ने आगे बताया कि बिहार और ओडिशा के कुछ स्टेशनों में डेटा उपलब्धता की इतनी कमी है कि ट्रेंड्स का सटीक आंकलन संभव नहीं है। उन्होंने कहा कि पश्चिम बंगाल के अधिकांश स्टेशनों का प्रदर्शन बेहतर है क्योंकि उनके पास डेटा उपलब्धता 95 प्रतिशत से अधिक है।ओडिशा के तालचेर और बिहार के गया में कलेक्ट्रेट के स्टेशन न्यूनतम 80 प्रतिशत डेटा उपलब्ध कराटे हैं वहीँ ठीक इसके विपरीत पटना के राजवंशी नगर में सीएएक्यूएमएस स्टेशनों पर 100 प्रतिशत डेटा उपलब्धता है। पश्चिम बंगाल में कोलकाता, हावड़ा, सिलीगुड़ी और दुर्गापुर में कई अन्य स्टेशन तथा बिहार के पटना, गया और मुजफ्फरपुर में कुछ भिन्नता के साथ 95-100 प्रतिशत डाटा उपलब्ध दिखता हैं। बिहार एवं ओडिशा के ख़राब डेटा मुहैया करवाने वाले स्टेशनों का कारण उक्त क्षेत्र में खराब बिजली और इंटरनेट कनेक्टिविटी से जोड़ा जा सकता है।

Pollution levels that dipped during 2020 lockdown threaten to bounce back: CSE

New Delhi, Jan 10 With the levels of pollution rising this year, the downward dip, induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020, will not persist, a new analysis of regional pollution trends done by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) showed.</p><div id="div-ub-lokmat"><script> window.unibots = window.unibots || { cmd: [] }; unibots.cmd.push(()=>{ unibotsPlayer('lokmat'); });</script> </div><p>"This analysis of real time air quality data for the period 2019-2021 shows that the downward dip in pollution that was induced by the hard lockdown phases of the pandemic in 2020 is threatening to bounce back with the levels in 2021 already rising. But in many cases, the levels are still lower than 2019. This underscores the urgency of scaling up action across all sectors to prevent further worsening and to arrest the trend in this region," said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at CSE. </p>

Air panel to check public suggestions

New Delhi: The central government panel on air quality, CAQM, has constituted an expert group to examine the public suggestions it had received before finalising a policy to curb air pollution in NCR. The Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM), in an order dated January 7, stated that it had formed a nine-member expert group headed by P Raghavendra, chairman, Haryana State Pollution Control Board. The group also has experts from CAQM, IIT-Kanpur, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Centre for Science and Environment, Central Pollution Control Board, Maulana Azad Medical College and Council for Energy Environment and Water. The expert group, CAQM stated, will examine the suggestions it received from public and thereby work on a policy to finalise a “permanent solution” for the pollution woes of NCR. The step was taken following directions from the Supreme Court, which on December 16 asked CAQM to consider the public suggestions, following which CAQM on December 24, 2021 invited suggestions.

Climate change: Cleaning up India's energy systems

Expert Sunita Narain writes that in the fight against climate change, India's real challenge will not be building infrastructure, but ensuring that even the poorest can pay the cost of this 'clean' energy When it comes to climate change, three truths must define the way the world, and India, act to combat this challenge. First, we must recognise the urgent reality of extreme weather, attributed to emissions from burning of fossil fuels, that is devasting the entire world. Therefore, the world must act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, fast and drastically. There should be no arguments on this.

Will 2022 bridge the yawning gaps in national and state level clean air action?

n 2022, as many as 132 cities that are currently implementing clean air action plans under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), will have only two years left to meet the 2024 target of 20-30% cut in annual average particulate pollution from 2017 levels. While these generic targets are common for all cities, the city-wise target for meeting the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for both particulate matter of size less than 10 micron and 2.5 micron (PM10 and PM2.5) are significantly tighter for some. Especially those in the Indo Gangetic Plain, where the reduction needed is 50-60% or more. But even before cities could come closer to meeting their minimal air quality targets, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has started the process of further tightening of air quality standards. The World Health Organisation (WHO) too has raised the bar to protect public health. The new WHO guidelines for particulate matter are eight to four times more stringent than the current Indian standards. his raises questions about the effectiveness of the action initiated under two funding streams that are currently available to support clean air action in cities. Under NCAP, about Rs 460 core were earmarked out of which about Rs 375.44 crore (81%), has been disbursed, with allocation varying between Rs 10-20 crore per city. The other is a bigger kitty of Rs 4,400 crore for urban local bodies in 42 cities with more than a million population (ULB Funding) for air pollution mitigation, sanctioned by the 15th Finance Commission. Poor fund utilisation The recent status update on NCAP funding by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and Climate Change shows poor utilization — a mere 33.53% at the end of three years of NCAP implementation. While Bihar and Chandigarh have shown high utilization, 76.98% and 81.55% respectively, it is just 7.92% in Maharashtra. North eastern states like Assam, Nagaland and other and the hill states like Himachal Pradesh also show very low utilisation. Other comparatively better performers include West Bengal (57.63%), Rajasthan (57.24%), Uttarakhand (53.17%) and Jharkhand (50%). Southern states of Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh indicate utilisation of 34.35%, 16.90% and 9.61%, respectively. If funding of clean air action has to become more performance-oriented in the coming years, it is necessary to understand the scope and nature of funding for verifiable improvement in air quality. Low fund utilisation indicates shortfall in targeted action. But what ultimately matters is not only the full implementation of the plans but the effectiveness of the actions. Currently, the NCAP funding is largely designed to improve air quality monitoring and support emissions source inventory and source apportionment studies. While this technical support for air quality management is important, direct mitigation action is not the core focus of the NCAP funding yet. The available funding for mitigation is largely limited to road dust control (mechanical sweeping and water sprinkling); it is not designed for deep, multi-sector action identified under NCAP. Addressing capacity gaps There is an expectation that state governments will also provide funding support. But there is little clarity about the scope of funding on pollution mitigation related to industry, vehicles, transport, waste management, clean fuel access, among others. There is largely no additional committed funding at the state level except the existing line funding which is quite status quo in its approach. There is also not enough evidence on ground to demonstrate the level of reduction that has been possible with the current effort to reduce pollution towards air quality targets. Similar assessment of the spending pattern of ULB Funding under the 15th Finance Commission is not yet available. As this is a new line of funding, most cities are either preparing or have just started implementing the micro-action plans to utilize this fund. However, these plans have created opportunities for more granular planning in each sector requiring sector-wise and indicator-wise target setting and earmarking of funds. Delhi air quality File pic of Smog in Delhi. Every winter, air quality in Delhi touch hazardous levels. Pic: Wikimedia Commons This has, for the first time, pushed the concerned sectoral departments in cities to align their programmes and budget to deliver on clean air targets. CPCB has defined more than 250 indicators covering all sectors for planning and reporting. If action, compliance and progress can be tracked for each indicator every quarter, more systemic changes are possible for clean air gains. Read more: Delhi’s toxic air: From emergency measures to sustained action However, a review of this process in a few states by the Centre for Science and Environment shows that while this is a useful exercise to align inter-departmental work, a lot more is needed to build capacity for planning and compliance at the city level. Even though plans have taken shape, the scope of action for effective mitigation is often not clear to the agencies. Therefore, planning for adequate infrastructure, system change and regulatory and administrative measures to support action remains limited. For instance, action on industrial pollution is largely in status quo in terms of monitoring, inspection and issuance of consent to operate or closure notices. Focus on targeted introduction of clean fuels, adoption of emissions control technologies in big and small scale units, enforcement of new standards and advanced monitoring for compliance have not been adequately addressed. Similarly, while action on public transport, walking and cycling are included in the plans, there is little clarity about designing these strategies for effective increase in their mode share and to reduce traffic volume and vehicular kilometers travelled. On the contrary, inappropriate approaches like road widening, flyovers and increasing parking supply that increases traffic intensity and emissions, have qualified for funding. Data collection and analysis gaps This exercise has also shown how unprepared the departments are in tracking data for reporting progress on all sectoral indicators. It is often not well-understood how to record and use data for reporting progress. Often several other actions under way, which have a bearing on air quality improvement, remain underreported because of this lack of clarity. Scope of action also remains narrow. For instance, control of road dust is largely limited to sweeping of roads and sprinkling water and ignores paving and greening. Not enough connection is made with plantation and protection of forests and water bodies, green walling and soil stabilisation techniques in agriculture to control dust. Nearly all cities have found it challenging to set targets for future action as comprehensive policy planning aligning with the clean air indicators have not been carried out at the state and departmental levels. Nearly every action requires standard operating procedures and management information systems within departments. This needs comprehensive mapping of enforcement strategy, strengthening of regulatory and administrative measures, and building infrastructure and skills to provide targeted support and set targets. Finally, the NCAP is also preparing to come up with state level action plans to address the problem at a regional scale and not remain confined to city limits. It is not yet clear how this will operate to include both urban and rural sources within an accountability framework and as shared responsibility between different jurisdictions. The bottom line is that 2022 has to be about measurable and verifiable improvement in air quality across all regions.

From the Editor-in-Chief

India Today Editor-in-Chief Aroon Purie on India's big concerns through insights from a panel of experts in their particular fields We entered 2022 with a sense of déjà vu because the new year seems a lot like the year gone by. Covid-19 cases are rising again and a far more contagious strain of the novel coronavirus is spreading across the globe. The good thing, though, is that two years on, Covid-19 is no longer an unknown unknown. We know the nature of the beast and experienced the worst of it last year when the Delta variant tore across India, triggering the second wave of infections, aggravated by an acute medical oxygen crisis and black fungus cases, all of which collectively killed over 200,000 people in the country. We are now far better prepared with vaccine stocks and the government’s booster dose programme. Covid-19 has claimed 5.4 globally, just a tenth of the estimated 50 million deaths from the 1918 influenza pandemic, also referred to as the ‘Spanish flu’. The outbreak raged for about two years and infected a third of humanity. The new Omicron strain of Covid, from all available evidence, is milder than Delta. That’s a relief. Although we are still in the midst of the pandemic, we seem to be much better off. But this should not breed complacency. Viruses seldom behave the way you want them to. The world today has four times the population it had a century ago and is far more interconnected. One study finds that the global economy could lose almost $3 trillion (Rs 223 lakh crore) due to Covid-19. It is projected to grow at 4.3 per cent in 2022, slightly below the 5.8 per cent it achieved last year (after -3.3 per cent in 2020). The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates global GDP losses could rise to $5.3 trillion (Rs 393 lakh crore) over five years with several million lives lost. Strong economic growth is a key imperative for India if it is to pull more people out of poverty. The pandemic’s trajectory, particularly its linkage with the wellness of people, will be the most important factor determining global economic recovery in 2022. In addition to these two intertwined concerns, India has a third sharp end of a threat triangle to deal with— China. In May 2020, a belligerent Beijing shredded three decades of peace and tranquillity protocols when it moved heavy military units to the boundary in eastern Ladakh, where both sides remain entrenched. Apart from concerns of health, economy and security, several other factors will weigh on the minds of the political establishment in 2022. This year, we celebrate the 75th anniversary of our independence. There will be elections to the office of the President and Vice-President and to seven state assemblies. The BJP is in power in six of these states, including Prime Minister Modi’s home state of Gujarat. The party’s strategy to fight anti-incumbency will be closely watched. There are, however, more long-term concerns in the year ahead and beyond. Our special issue, ‘2022: Hope & Fear’, put together by Editor (Features) Kai Friese, looks at these concerns through insights from a panel of experts in their particular fields. For instance, virologist Gangandeep Kang says science and public health, supported by policy, need to be at the forefront of our control endeavours because the threat from global waves of SARS-CoV-2 variants is not going away. China watcher Andrew Small explains that Beijing now has a greater appetite for escalating crises than it did in the past and thinks it can live with antagonistic relationships on multiple fronts. Former foreign secretary Shyam Saran believes 2022 will be more unpredictable and hopes for it to be India’s year of a revitalised Act East policy and engagement with economic blocs, such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Financial strategist Neelkanth Mishra feels India should seize the opportunity and focus on increasing its share of global trade, both in services and merchandise. Economist Jahangir Aziz outlines five broad trends to watch for—Covid-19 turning endemic, the impact of COP26 commitments on future energy sources, a policy regime change in China, the permanent damage caused by the Covid pandemic, and global electoral cycles in the next few years. Environmentalist Sunita Narain says it is time for India to reinvent growth without pollution by designing a more resource efficient, affordable and sustainable climate change model. Former agriculture secretary Siraj Hussain and researcher Shweta Saini write about how the farmers’ agitation against the central farm laws should not be seen as the end of the road for agri- cultural reforms. For technologist Rohan Murty, a major theme of 2022 will be deploying tech to improve people’s experience at work. The RSS, the BJP’s ideological parent, will celebrate 100 years of its existence in 2025. According to RSS ideologue Ram Madhav, the challenge for the organisation will be to find a balance between pride and anger, ensuring that neither spills over. Author and Trinamool Congress leader Pavan K. Varma, however, argues that Hindutva aims to overturn the inclusiveness and eclecticism of Hinduism. Group Editorial Director (Publishing) Raj Chengappa writes about the need for the Modi government to stay the course on economic reforms. Senior advocate Arvind P. Datar says India must nurture the institutional independence of courts and tribunals if it wants to be treated on par with the great western democracies, while globalisation specialist Parag Khanna sees the waves of migrating Indians as reshaping the world. Finally, sports writer Sharda Ugra predicts that the new year will be one of a resurgence of Indian athletes across all sport. This is truly a galaxy of fine writers and if you want to know the direction the country and the world are taking, or ought to be taking, this special issue is a must read. Enjoy.