Prevention of Air Pollution for Sustainable Environment

Air pollution is the natural processes caused by human activities through which certain substances enter the atmosphere at a sufficient concentration to cause environmental pollution. The World Health Organization reported that 80% of the world's cases of heart disease and stroke deaths were due to air pollution, and a total of 7 million people in the world died of air pollution in 2012. Unplanned urbanization, industrialization, and agricultural activities contribute to air pollution. Climate change affects air pollution in a number of factors including changes in temperature, solar radiation, humidity, precipitation, atmospheric transport, and biogenic emissions. Increasing scientific evidence shows that air pollution and climate change policies must be integrated to achieve sustainable development and a low carbon (LC) society. Combined efforts to deal with air pollution and climate issues at the urban level will be particularly important as most people are exposed to air pollution, and 75% of global GHG emissions are generated in urban areas.

The Climate Change and Air Pollution

Environmental pollution states the toxification by different forms of pollutants in the surroundings. This causes the natural system imbalance and affects the life on earth in different ways. The emissions of pollutants into air result in climate changes. The rising levels of CO2 and other air-polluting gases increase the greenhouse effect which results in temperature elevations and affects global weather patterns. Bill Gates also warned “Climate change is a terrible problem, and it absolutely needs to be solved; it deserves to be a huge priority”. Though climate change and air pollution are closely linked, these are treated as separate problems. Hence, it is aimed to understand the aspects of association between climate change and air pollution in this chapter with the objectives: (i) To know the basics of climate change and air pollution, (ii) To review the active background studies on climate change as well as on air pollution, (iii) To identify the issues, controversies, problems which include the effects of global warming and greenhouse gases followed by the types of air pollutants and its harmful effects, (iv) To find the solutions and recommendations, the discussions are made on climate laws and policies, (v) To retrieve, analyze and store the climate change related information, the description about models, tools and databases are given, (vi) To have a flawless insights on the association of climate change and air pollution, (vii) To exemplify species indicators for the assessment of the effect of air pollution on climate change are also included. As Bernie Sanders said “Climate change is a planetary crisis. We've got to act, and we have to act boldly”.

Air Pollution Meteorology

Air pollution is a major environmental problem. It is divided into indoor air pollution and outdoor air pollution. The pollutants released in the outdoor atmosphere are under the control of meteorological conditions prevailing at the time of emission and after. Thus, the subject, air pollution meteorology, has emerged. It explains the significance of meteorological aspects and their influences on air pollutants emitted in the outdoor atmosphere. Prevailing winds and atmospheric stability are the two major factors that determine the dispersion of the pollutants. In this chapter, a brief outline is presented on composition and structure of atmosphere, and its processes such as radiation through the atmosphere, winds, global circulation, and atmospheric stability. Mixing height and ventilation coefficients are explained. The prediction of air quality using Gaussian dispersion model with the input of data of emission and meteorology is also explained.

Indexing Method for Assessment of Air Quality

Rapid urbanization and globalization has led to severe degradation of existing air quality in the majority of Indian cities. In this context, the general public has been aware of their exposure to ambient air quality and the effects of such air pollutants on human health. Hence, the concept of Air quality indices (AQI) is often used by regulatory authorities in conveying the status of existing ambient air quality to the general public. The chapter presents the application of air quality indices for assessing the existing air quality standards in an Indian city, Dharamshala, a tourist location in Himachal Pradesh, for the period of 2016-2017. Two different methods of determining AQI have been used wherein one method is used as the revised Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), India with different sub-indices for Indian conditions based on the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) methodology and another alternative method utilizes contribution from all criteria pollutants.

Air Pollution and Climate Change

Climate records kept worldwide clearly show that ongoing changes are happening in our eco-systems. Such climate changes include temperature, precipitation, or sea level, all of which are expected to keep changing well into the future, thereby affecting human health, the environment, and the economy. The natural causes by themselves are not able to describe these changes, so to understand these, scientists are using a combination of state-of-the-science measurements and models. Human activities are a major contributor due to the release of different air contaminants through various activities. Air pollution is one case-in-point, a human-made factor that contributes to climate change by affecting the amount of incoming sunlight that is either reflected or absorbed by the atmosphere. An overview of modeling techniques used to relate air quality and climate change is presented. The discussion includes the role of air pollution levels affecting the climate. Emerging topics such as black carbon (BC), fine particulate matters (PMs), role of cook stove, and risk assessment are also covered.

Non-Point Source Pollutants From Motor Vehicles

Motor vehicles emit gaseous pollutants from incomplete carbon reactions, unburned hydrocarbons, or other elements present in the fuel or air during combustion of fossil fuels. Atmospheric pollution is caused by multiple sources, making it a non-point source for the pollutants. The adverse effects of vehicular pollution are physical, chemical, and socio-economic in nature and are to be mitigated by the process of education, rules, and policies. A study has been done with the activated carbon made from Proposis cineria for mitigation.

Characterization of Magnetic and Non-Magnetic Components From a Low Carbon Fly Ash

Low carbon coal ash—a solid air pollutant from super thermal power plant using pulverized fuel combustor—has been characterized in respect of its physico-chemical, mineralogical, and morphological features. Size-classified fractions with their magnetic and non-magnetic components have also been characterized. Low loss on ignition and particle size distribution profile shows fly ash has high utility. The magic number,10 µm, is attained by greater % of particles. The particles with diameter 50 µm occupy population density of 93%. SEM-EDS reveals that particles are mostly globular with high surface enrichment of Al/Si indicating that it will act as un-reactive inert fillers. In magnetic components, various types of Fe bearing phase are present with less porous and more regular shape than non-magnetic components. Finer fractions have high content of magnetite which is expected to help in coal beneficiation. The finer non-magnetic fraction is a source of alumino-siliceous material for synthesizing a novel solid acid or base catalyst for catalyzing industrially important organic reactions.

System Dynamics Modelling for Analyzing CO2 Emissions

System dynamics is an interdisciplinary problem-solving methodology that utilizes several significant thinking skills such as dynamic thinking and cause-and-effect thinking. System dynamics is a disciplined collaborative approach that could accelerate learning by combining a multifaceted perspective that provides insight into complex and interactive issues. This chapter aims to develop a system dynamic model. The amount of CO2 oscillations were investigated from the production of electrical energy depending on the rate of population growth up 2030. Model results, which are developed using Vensim package program, have been observed related to the variables of the adaptations.

Effects of Atmospheric Pollutants on Biodiversity

Biodiversity is severely affected by the various anthropogenic activities. Humans depend on natural resources for survival. The resources include food, clean drinking water, timber for construction, fibers for clothing, natural gas, and coal for industries. The biggest threat to the atmosphere is pollutants caused by different human activities. The earth atmosphere is a layer of gases that surrounds the planet and allows us to breathe and live. The atmosphere is made up of Nitrogen, Oxygen, and others types of gases. This mixture of gases is known as air. Air pollution results from a variety of pollutants like NO2, SO2, CO, CFCs, and Ozone. Carbon dioxide, which is a greenhouse gas, warms the earth. This chapter will explore the effects of atmospheric pollutants on biodiversity due to various types of adulterants in the atmosphere and its effects on the survival of earth. Additionally, it will sketch various tools that can reduce these harmful activities.

Climate Changes and Atmospheric Pollution

The objective of this chapter is to present the central concepts, parameters, and methods for the monitoring of climate changes, with a focus on air pollution, and the possible global and regional impacts of climate changes as well. There are plant species used as bioindicators that have a high sensitivity or ability to accumulate environmental pollutants. Another method that this chapter will present is the use of receiver models that employ both mathematical and statistical approaches to quantify the individual contribution of a given number of emission sources in the composition of a sample. The data presented in this chapter will provide reliable bases and methodologies for environmental control, supporting the adoption of more restrictive policies.