Saturday, November 10, 2012
Friday, November 09, 2012
Particulate Pollution in Hyderabad, India
An article published in EMAS, November, 2012
Abstract
Air quality in Hyderabad, India, often exceeds the national ambient air
quality standards, especially for particulate matter (PM), which, in
2010, averaged 82.2 ± 24.6, 96.2 ± 12.1, and 64.3 ± 21.2 μg/m3 of PM10,
at commercial, industrial, and residential monitoring stations,
respectively, exceeding the national ambient standard of 60 μg/m3.
In 2005, following an ordinance passed by the Supreme Court of India, a
source apportionment study was conducted to quantify source
contributions to PM pollution in Hyderabad, using the chemical mass
balance (version 8.2) receptor model for 180 ambient samples collected
at three stations for PM10 and PM2.5 size fractions for three seasons. The receptor modeling results indicated that the PM10 pollution is dominated by the direct vehicular exhaust and road dust (more than 60 %). PM2.5
with higher propensity to enter the human respiratory tracks, has mixed
sources of vehicle exhaust, industrial coal combustion, garbage
burning, and secondary PM. In order to improve the air quality in the
city, these findings demonstrate the need to control emissions from all
known sources and particularly focus on the low-hanging fruits like road
dust and waste burning, while the technological and institutional
advancements in the transport and industrial sectors are bound to
enhance efficiencies. Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board utilized
these results to prepare an air pollution control action plan for the
city.
Abstract
Tuesday, November 06, 2012
Air Pollution in Delhi (The Economist)
The Economist, November 6th, 2012
MID-AFTERNOON in Delhi, and a red blob looms in the haze. The sun
barely illuminates the city. A yellow-green smog hangs low. Even
indoors, fuzzy halos of dust and smoke surround lamps. Those foolish
enough to be out jogging, or compelled to stand at junctions directing
traffic, complain of shortness of breath, migraines, clogged lungs.
Newspapers are crammed with articles about asthma, wheezing children at
clinics, an epidemic of grumpiness and gloom, the frail and elderly
falling victim to an annual—and worsening—scourge: Delhi’s winter
pea-soupers.
Top 100 cities with the worst air quality in the World (WHO, 2011).
By one estimate the Delhi smog kills 10,500 people a
year: smog can trigger heart or asthma attacks, particulate matter
causes cancer. Like just about every big Asian city that has grown fast,
with only a passing concern for environmental standards, its air is
wretched. Official data prove it so. India’s minister for the
environment, Jayanthi Natarajan, said so explicitly before parliament in
March, explaining that India sets national standards for various nasty
pollutants, and monitors for them in 216 towns and cities.
For Delhi, between 2001 and 2010, there was one bright light. The annual average level of sulphur dioxide fell from 14 micrograms per cubic meter to just five. For that Dilliwallahs should thank improvements in transport: a court order roughly a decade ago compelled some 100,000 buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws to switch from running on diesel to compressed natural gas; a successful metro network has been rolled out; a ban on lorries from Delhi’s roads is reasonably well enforced, between 6am and 9pm.
On other scores, matters are much worse. Levels of nitrogen oxide almost doubled over the same period, from 29 micrograms to 55, on average. A measure of particulate matter known as PM10 (any dust with a diameter less than 10 micrometres) has also more than doubled, from 120 to 261, way above the prescribed limit of 100. Keep in mind, too, that pollution is relatively low in the blazing summer months, and during the monsoon. In the winter, by contrast, truly terrifying levels lift the annual average. A glance at the website of a Delhi government agency on November 5th, for example, showed the PM10 level at 749, more than seven times over the safe limit. And for more dangerous tiny particles, known as PM2.5, the agreed safe limit is 60, whereas the official Delhi site reported a level of 489, over eight times too high.
Such statistics are not really needed. Rub your skin after a short walk outside and your fingers are left coated with black smudges. As the worst of the smog appears,it becomes riskier than ever to drive or walk on chaotic roads as visibility falls to just a few metres. Come the new year, Delhi’s airport is battered by delays as fog and smog, usually in the morning, slow the departure and arrival of aircraft. The huge annual festival of Diwali—to be celebrated on November 13th this year—sees a series of immense, deafening and beautiful firework displays, which leave sulphur and gunpowder smoke choking the air for days.
Add to that the impact of the huge bonfires of waste, post-harvest. A striking picture just released by NASA shows thousands of orange dots, blazes that give off the smoke and smog that gathers across much of north India and then sits unmoving as temperatures drop and air pressure—an “inversion”—holds everything still. It is as if a greenhouse is erected above Delhi, to catch and contain the swirling brown exhaust from cars, smoke from oily fires, along with dust and industrial fumes. Right now, too, meteorologists say a distant cyclone, off the east coast of India, has left extra moisture over the northern plains, which has helped to make the smog even denser.
By some measures, Delhi’s rotten air, at least at the worst time of year, competes with the most gasp-inducing of all. One ranking (by UN Habitat) of carbon-dioxide levels, indoor pollution and PM10, suggests its air is worse even than that in Beijing, China’s capital. Residents there may beg to differ, saying their own smogs are worse yet. Even if, on average around the year, some other cities are arguably even worse—Karachi in Pakistan and Dhaka in Bangladesh look particularly dire—it is a miserable competition to join.
What could be done? Getting away from the city makes good sense: Kashmir is rather nice at this time of year. Individuals are told they may protect themselves a bit, for example by hiding indoors, keeping doors and windows closed and using air filters. General advice against exercising outdoors at least gives couch potatoes an excuse to put off keep-fit regimes for another few months.
For Delhi, a series of other measures make sense. Perhaps a fifth of all the pollution in the city is still caused by traffic, notably from diesel cars. Scrapping subsidies on diesel might help, for example by pushing more people on to public transport or at least into more efficient vehicles. The metro is now some 180km long, and is rather good, but it could be expanded further. Lots more buses, and bus lanes, would be useful too.
Beyond vehicle emissions, there are other causes of woe aplenty, as well described by Sarath Guttikunda of the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi in a recent study (subscription required). He notes for example that some 1,000 brick kilns surround Delhi, serving its construction boom, baking bricks by burning coal, wood and other organic smoky stuff. Such kilns are traditional, inefficient and dirty. Converting these to something cleaner—or moving them farther away—would surely help.
Similarly coal- and oil-fired power stations near Delhi have, over the years, been converted to gas or moved away. Six power plants remain near the city, but as the general power grid fails repeatedly, wealthy residents, hospitals and businesses turn increasingly to diesel-generators in the city centre, points out Mr Guttikunda. Making the grid more reliable, therefore, would cut the use of such stinky and noisy machines. Paving more roads would lessen the amount of dust (a big portion of PM10) thrown up into the air, while a ban on burning rubbish would cut the oily particles, and so on.
The lesson from the court-ordered transport switch is that official intervention, and proper monitoring, can bring direct and most welcome improvements. It helps, too, that the rich, aside from fleeing, can hardly breathe different air from the poor; thus almost everyone should have a strong interest in doing something to improve matters. Delhi, after all, is gasping for a change.
Top 100 cities with the worst air quality in the World (WHO, 2011).
For Delhi, between 2001 and 2010, there was one bright light. The annual average level of sulphur dioxide fell from 14 micrograms per cubic meter to just five. For that Dilliwallahs should thank improvements in transport: a court order roughly a decade ago compelled some 100,000 buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws to switch from running on diesel to compressed natural gas; a successful metro network has been rolled out; a ban on lorries from Delhi’s roads is reasonably well enforced, between 6am and 9pm.
On other scores, matters are much worse. Levels of nitrogen oxide almost doubled over the same period, from 29 micrograms to 55, on average. A measure of particulate matter known as PM10 (any dust with a diameter less than 10 micrometres) has also more than doubled, from 120 to 261, way above the prescribed limit of 100. Keep in mind, too, that pollution is relatively low in the blazing summer months, and during the monsoon. In the winter, by contrast, truly terrifying levels lift the annual average. A glance at the website of a Delhi government agency on November 5th, for example, showed the PM10 level at 749, more than seven times over the safe limit. And for more dangerous tiny particles, known as PM2.5, the agreed safe limit is 60, whereas the official Delhi site reported a level of 489, over eight times too high.
Such statistics are not really needed. Rub your skin after a short walk outside and your fingers are left coated with black smudges. As the worst of the smog appears,it becomes riskier than ever to drive or walk on chaotic roads as visibility falls to just a few metres. Come the new year, Delhi’s airport is battered by delays as fog and smog, usually in the morning, slow the departure and arrival of aircraft. The huge annual festival of Diwali—to be celebrated on November 13th this year—sees a series of immense, deafening and beautiful firework displays, which leave sulphur and gunpowder smoke choking the air for days.
Add to that the impact of the huge bonfires of waste, post-harvest. A striking picture just released by NASA shows thousands of orange dots, blazes that give off the smoke and smog that gathers across much of north India and then sits unmoving as temperatures drop and air pressure—an “inversion”—holds everything still. It is as if a greenhouse is erected above Delhi, to catch and contain the swirling brown exhaust from cars, smoke from oily fires, along with dust and industrial fumes. Right now, too, meteorologists say a distant cyclone, off the east coast of India, has left extra moisture over the northern plains, which has helped to make the smog even denser.
By some measures, Delhi’s rotten air, at least at the worst time of year, competes with the most gasp-inducing of all. One ranking (by UN Habitat) of carbon-dioxide levels, indoor pollution and PM10, suggests its air is worse even than that in Beijing, China’s capital. Residents there may beg to differ, saying their own smogs are worse yet. Even if, on average around the year, some other cities are arguably even worse—Karachi in Pakistan and Dhaka in Bangladesh look particularly dire—it is a miserable competition to join.
What could be done? Getting away from the city makes good sense: Kashmir is rather nice at this time of year. Individuals are told they may protect themselves a bit, for example by hiding indoors, keeping doors and windows closed and using air filters. General advice against exercising outdoors at least gives couch potatoes an excuse to put off keep-fit regimes for another few months.
For Delhi, a series of other measures make sense. Perhaps a fifth of all the pollution in the city is still caused by traffic, notably from diesel cars. Scrapping subsidies on diesel might help, for example by pushing more people on to public transport or at least into more efficient vehicles. The metro is now some 180km long, and is rather good, but it could be expanded further. Lots more buses, and bus lanes, would be useful too.
Beyond vehicle emissions, there are other causes of woe aplenty, as well described by Sarath Guttikunda of the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi in a recent study (subscription required). He notes for example that some 1,000 brick kilns surround Delhi, serving its construction boom, baking bricks by burning coal, wood and other organic smoky stuff. Such kilns are traditional, inefficient and dirty. Converting these to something cleaner—or moving them farther away—would surely help.
Similarly coal- and oil-fired power stations near Delhi have, over the years, been converted to gas or moved away. Six power plants remain near the city, but as the general power grid fails repeatedly, wealthy residents, hospitals and businesses turn increasingly to diesel-generators in the city centre, points out Mr Guttikunda. Making the grid more reliable, therefore, would cut the use of such stinky and noisy machines. Paving more roads would lessen the amount of dust (a big portion of PM10) thrown up into the air, while a ban on burning rubbish would cut the oily particles, and so on.
The lesson from the court-ordered transport switch is that official intervention, and proper monitoring, can bring direct and most welcome improvements. It helps, too, that the rich, aside from fleeing, can hardly breathe different air from the poor; thus almost everyone should have a strong interest in doing something to improve matters. Delhi, after all, is gasping for a change.
Monday, November 05, 2012
Air Pollution in Delhi - November 2012
NDTV, November 8th, 2012
Haze due to farm fires in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh: Sheila Dikshit.
First Post, November 8th, 2012
Dear Mrs Dikshit, don’t blame farmers but Delhi cars for smog.
IBN Live, November 8th, 2012
SC expresses concern as smog situation worsens; Delhi govt blames UP, Haryana.
PTI News, November 8th, 2012
Delhi govt to crack down burning of leaves, garbage.
Wall Street Journal, November 8th, 2012
Delhi’s Air Pollution Worse Than Ever.
IBN Live, November 5th, 2012
Delhi smog sets alarm bells ringing, haze to continue for three days.
Times of India, November 5th, 2012
Smog screen thickens, to stay.
NDTV, November 5th, 2012
Winds back, Delhi smog shows signs of let-up after five days.
Down to Earth, November 3rd, 2012
Diwali is far, but smog is here.
NDTV, November 6th, 2012
Delhi smog worrying, we'll take up matter: Chief Justice of India.
The National, November 6th, 2012
New Delhi haze sets in, prompting warnings city 'will choke by 2021'.
The New York Times, November 5th, 2012
Delhiites: Why Don’t You Use Public Transportation?
The Economist, November 6th, 2012
Air pollution in India - A Delhi Particular.
Saturday, November 03, 2012
Particulate pollution from brick kiln clusters in the Greater Dhaka region, Bangladesh
Published in Air Quality, Atmosphere, and Health
Abstract
View Larger Map
Brick manufacturing is the fastest-growing industrial sector in Bangladesh and among the top three sectors, along with vehicle exhaust and resuspended road dust, contributing to the air pollution and health problems in Dhaka. The brick manufacturing in the Greater Dhaka region, from ~1,000 brick kilns spread across six districts, is confined to the winter season (October to March) as current technologies do not allow production during the monsoon. The total emissions are estimated at 23,300 t of PM2.5; 15,500 t of sulfur dioxide (SO2), 302,000 t of carbon monoxide (CO), 6,000 t of black carbon, and 1.8 million tons of CO2 emissions from these clusters, to produce 3.5 billion bricks per year, using energy-inefficient fixed chimney bull trench kiln technology and predominantly using coal and agricultural waste as fuel. The associated health impacts largely fall on the densely populated districts of Dhaka Metropolitan Area (DMA), Gazipur, and Narayanganj. Using the Atmospheric Transport Modeling System dispersion model, the impact of brick kiln emissions was estimated over DMA—ranging from 7 to 99 μg/m3 (5th and 95th percentile concentration per model grid) at an average of 38 μg/m3;
and spatial contributions from the surrounding clusters—with 27 % originating from Narayanganj (to the south with the highest kiln density), 30 % from Gazipur (to the north with equally large cluster spread along the river and canals), and 23 % from Savar. The modeling results are validated using evidence from receptor modeling studies conducted in DMA.
An introduction of emerging vertical shaft combustion technology can provide faster benefits for public health in DMA and reduce climate precursor emissions by selecting the most influential clusters discussed in this paper.
Abstract
View Larger Map
Brick manufacturing is the fastest-growing industrial sector in Bangladesh and among the top three sectors, along with vehicle exhaust and resuspended road dust, contributing to the air pollution and health problems in Dhaka. The brick manufacturing in the Greater Dhaka region, from ~1,000 brick kilns spread across six districts, is confined to the winter season (October to March) as current technologies do not allow production during the monsoon. The total emissions are estimated at 23,300 t of PM2.5; 15,500 t of sulfur dioxide (SO2), 302,000 t of carbon monoxide (CO), 6,000 t of black carbon, and 1.8 million tons of CO2 emissions from these clusters, to produce 3.5 billion bricks per year, using energy-inefficient fixed chimney bull trench kiln technology and predominantly using coal and agricultural waste as fuel. The associated health impacts largely fall on the densely populated districts of Dhaka Metropolitan Area (DMA), Gazipur, and Narayanganj. Using the Atmospheric Transport Modeling System dispersion model, the impact of brick kiln emissions was estimated over DMA—ranging from 7 to 99 μg/m3 (5th and 95th percentile concentration per model grid) at an average of 38 μg/m3;
and spatial contributions from the surrounding clusters—with 27 % originating from Narayanganj (to the south with the highest kiln density), 30 % from Gazipur (to the north with equally large cluster spread along the river and canals), and 23 % from Savar. The modeling results are validated using evidence from receptor modeling studies conducted in DMA.
An introduction of emerging vertical shaft combustion technology can provide faster benefits for public health in DMA and reduce climate precursor emissions by selecting the most influential clusters discussed in this paper.
Thursday, November 01, 2012
Air Pollution News & Alerts - November 1st, 2012
Hindustan Times, November 1st, 2012
Winter spurts air pollution in Delhi.
Scientific American, November 1st, 2012
People in Poor Neighborhoods Breathe More Hazardous Particles.
Bangkok Post, October 31st, 2012
Judge backs bus pollution guilty verdict in Bangkok.
The Nation, October 31st, 2012
BMTA told to maintain clean buses.
All Africa, October 29th, 2012
South Africa: Govt Needs to Be Tough on Air Polluters.
UB Post, October 29th, 2012
Prime Minister Challenges on Recent Air Pollution Initiatives.
Environment News Service, October 29th, 2012
Atlas Aims to Ease Extreme Weather Impacts on Public Health.
Transport Extra, October 26th, 2012
A manifesto to make UK urban transport amongst the best in Europe.
China Daily, October 25th, 2012
Better use of air quality reports urged.
CNN, October 25th, 2012
Report: More Chinese cities need to come clean on air pollution.
CNN, October 25th, 2012
Report: More Chinese cities need to come clean on air pollution.
China Daily, October 25th, 2012
China's energy policy 2012.
Khaleej Times, October 25th, 2012
People power in China.
Hindustan Times, October 24th, 2012
Delhi: Ten points where the city chokes.
Bloomberg, October 24th, 2012
China Electric Vehicle Sales to Fall Short of Target.
NASA, October 24th, 2012
Haze over Eastern China.
The Huffington Post, October 24th, 2012
Fighting Climate Change and Air Pollution With One Swat.
The Telegraph, October 24th, 2012
Linfen: how China's Chernobyl turned the corner.
Phys.Org, October 23rd, 2012
Making transport a driver for development in Africa.
Renewables Biz, October 23rd, 2012
Environment so Far Taking a Back Seat.
China.Org, October 22nd, 2012
Air quality drops in Shanghai as PM2.5 spikes in fog.
The Washington Post, October 22nd, 2012
Obama’s record: Environmental agenda pushes sweeping attack on air pollution.
The Economist, October 20th, 2012
Climate change needs better regulation, not more political will.
City InfoOnline, October 20th, 2012
EPA Sued Over Vehicle Fees for Ozone Pollution.
Healthline, October 20th, 2012
Pollution from Megacities Decreases Air Quality in the U.S.
MIT News, October 19th, 2012
Researchers examine health impacts of more U.K. runways.
Environmental Health News, October 19th, 2012
Clean air regulations reduce hospital admissions in New York.
Phys.Org, October 19th, 2012
Hong Kong to tighten power plant emission limits.
Nature, October 18th, 2012
Technology: Clean stoves benefit climate and health.
The Breakthrough, October 18th, 2012
Cheap Gas — Not EPA Regs — Driving Coal’s Decline.
The National, October 17th, 2012
India green tax would be breath of fresh air: World Bank.
The Atlantic, October 17th, 2012
A Visual Guide to Chinese Air Pollution.
Bloomberg, October 17th, 2012
Is Obama Really Waging a War on Coal?
Xinhua Net, October 17th, 2012
China's power consumption slows further.
Hindustan Times, October 16th, 2012
Now, China to fly kites to keep pollution in check.
China Dialogue, October 15th, 2012
Official air pollution data in Beijing still failing the public.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Friday, October 19, 2012
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Application of SIM-air Family of Tools for Air Quality Analysis in Six Indian Cities
Published in Atmospheric Environment
Abstract
A prerequisite to an air quality management plan for a city is some idea of the main sources of pollution and their contributions for a city. This paper presents the results of an application of the SIM-air modeling tool in six Indian cities – Pune, Chennai, Indore, Ahmedabad, Surat, and Rajkot. Using existing and publicly available data, we put together a baseline of multi-pollutant emissions for each of the cities and then calculate concentrations, health impacts, and model alternative scenarios for 2020. The measured annual PM10 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter less than 10 micron meter) concentrations in μg/m3 averaged 94.7 ± 45.4 in Pune, 73.1 ± 33.7 in Chennai, 118.8 ± 44.3 in Indore, 94.0 ± 20.4 in Ahmedabad, 89.4 ± 12.1 in Surat, and 105.0 ± 25.6 in Rajkot, all exceeding the annual standard of 60 μg/m3. The PM10 inventory in tons/year for the year 2010 of 38,400 in Pune, 50,200 in Chennai, 18,600 in Indore, 31,900 in Ahmedabad, 20,000 in Surat, and 14,000 in Rajkot, is further spatially segregated into 1 km grids and includes all known sources such as transport, road dust, residential, power plants, industries (including the brick kilns), waste burning, and diesel generator sets. We use the ATMoS chemical transport model to validate the emissions inventory and estimate an annual premature mortality due to particulate pollution of 15,200 for the year 2010 for the six cities. Of the estimated 21,400 premature deaths in the six cities in 2020, we estimate that implementation of the six interventions in the transport and brick kiln sectors, can potentially save 5870 lives (27%) annually and result in an annual reduction of 16.8 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions in the six cities.
AbstractA prerequisite to an air quality management plan for a city is some idea of the main sources of pollution and their contributions for a city. This paper presents the results of an application of the SIM-air modeling tool in six Indian cities – Pune, Chennai, Indore, Ahmedabad, Surat, and Rajkot. Using existing and publicly available data, we put together a baseline of multi-pollutant emissions for each of the cities and then calculate concentrations, health impacts, and model alternative scenarios for 2020. The measured annual PM10 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter less than 10 micron meter) concentrations in μg/m3 averaged 94.7 ± 45.4 in Pune, 73.1 ± 33.7 in Chennai, 118.8 ± 44.3 in Indore, 94.0 ± 20.4 in Ahmedabad, 89.4 ± 12.1 in Surat, and 105.0 ± 25.6 in Rajkot, all exceeding the annual standard of 60 μg/m3. The PM10 inventory in tons/year for the year 2010 of 38,400 in Pune, 50,200 in Chennai, 18,600 in Indore, 31,900 in Ahmedabad, 20,000 in Surat, and 14,000 in Rajkot, is further spatially segregated into 1 km grids and includes all known sources such as transport, road dust, residential, power plants, industries (including the brick kilns), waste burning, and diesel generator sets. We use the ATMoS chemical transport model to validate the emissions inventory and estimate an annual premature mortality due to particulate pollution of 15,200 for the year 2010 for the six cities. Of the estimated 21,400 premature deaths in the six cities in 2020, we estimate that implementation of the six interventions in the transport and brick kiln sectors, can potentially save 5870 lives (27%) annually and result in an annual reduction of 16.8 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions in the six cities.
Monday, October 15, 2012
Delhi BRT is Now in a Society Class Divide (BBC)
Link to the article on BBC.
A government initiative to reduce traffic chaos in the Indian capital, Delhi, by creating a special fast lane for bus users has run into a major controversy.
A government initiative to reduce traffic chaos in the Indian capital, Delhi, by creating a special fast lane for bus users has run into a major controversy.
The city's first experimental Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor system allows bus users a smooth ride through traffic congestion, but it is facing legal challenge from a group which represents car users. The petition has also exposed the class divide in the Indian society. The Delhi High Court is to soon rule on the petition seeking to scrap the BRT corridor. The petitioners say that private car owners are suffering because of the preferential treatment given to public transport.
Class divide?
"Car owners are the creators of wealth. Do you realise that they get exhausted sitting in their cars due to traffic jams and they reach office completely tired? It affects their efficiency. Do you want them to perform less?" asks the main petitioner BB Sharan.
His NGO, Nyayabhoomi, has argued in the court that the system has slowed down the traffic and created problems for the people, "without any evident advantage to bus users".
But Geetam Tiwari, a road safety
expert and professor at Delhi's Indian Institute of Technology (IIT),
disagrees. She says the definition of "people" should include those who
walk to work or use bicycles and buses.
Undermining Public Interest (EPW)
"The problem of car users, who are in a minority, is being portrayed in the press as the people's problem. The fact is that less than 10% people in Delhi use private cars. More than 33% travel by buses and 30% walk to work," she says.
Prof Tiwari believes that the BRT is the only answer to Delhi's growing traffic problems, where 1,500 to 1,600 vehicles are registered daily. Government figures show that the number of private vehicles in Delhi has grown from 3.3 million in 2000-01 to nearly seven million in 2010-11.
Huge challenges
As the capital of one of the world's fastest growing economies, Delhi faces huge infrastructure challenges.
Experts say one of the main reasons for the exponential rise in private vehicles in the city is a lack of adequate public transport network and acute shortage of comfortable buses for its over 16 million people.
The Metro rail network, introduced in December 2002, has indeed taken some of the burden off the roads, but it is still a work in progress and does not cover large parts of the city.
Prof Tiwari was part of the expert group which came up with the idea of the BRT in 1995. She told the BBC that the inspiration came from the Brazilian city of Curitiba which has had the bus rapid transit corridor since 1975.
However, it took the Indian government more than a decade to finalise its urban transport policy which promised to allocate more road space to people rather than vehicles, which meant public transport would get priority over private cars.
The initial plan to construct 14 such
fast-track bus corridors in Delhi was put on hold after the 2008
decision to dedicate the first 5.8km (3.6-mile)-long stretch for buses
created controversy.
In the summer this year, the Delhi high court temporarily allowed private vehicles to use the bus corridor and ordered the government to assess the feasibility of the project.
The Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), which conducted trial runs to record the difference in traffic flow, in its 203-page report concluded that the corridor was "impractical" and its "faulty design" was causing traffic problems.
It said the BRT lane caused chaos because it was in the middle of the road and people wanting to board the bus had to cross the busy road to get to the bus stops.
The CRRI said that 71% bus users wanted bus stops by the side of the road.
However, in a hearing last month, the court supported the concept of an exclusive corridor for public transport and asked the government to "find a mechanism to remove the problem to save BRT". But critics said the CRRI study ignored the version of bus users and relied only on what the car owners had to say.
Social bias?
The head of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), Sunita Narayan says the study glosses over its own figures.
"Cars use more space; crowd the road and move far fewer people. The problem is that people do not matter in our cities; cars do. In this situation, BRT becomes the hate symbol while people waste time in traffic jams," Ms Narayan wrote in the latest issue of Down to Earth magazine.
Commentators say the whole debate over private versus public transport reflects the mindset that believes in the great social divide that has existed in Delhi since the Moghul period.
Prof Pushpesh Pant says the debate manifests the class divide in a status-conscious city where a car is considered more of a status symbol than a convenient mode of transport.
Rich versus poor
Mr Sharan, the man spearheading the campaign against the BRT, dismisses the argument. He says those who travel in their own cars are the decision-makers, therefore, they should get a priority over buses. He believes that bus users can wait because they are engaged in less important jobs.
"You cannot keep a commander-in-chief waiting in traffic while his army is waiting for his orders. How does it matter if a peon reaches office five minute before time?" Mr Sharan asks.
But what about those who travel by buses?
Salman, a young technician from Bihar, is part of the huge workforce that depends on the public transport to get from one place to another.
He says it is not fair to give preference to car users.
"It is more important that we reach the office on time rather than the employers because we are the ones who do the work, not them," says Salman.
Another bus commuter, Avinash Chaudhary, is bitter about the whole debate.
"Car users are generally big officials or influential people. Nobody is going to mark them absent even if they reach office four hours' late. But a daily wage earner, who gets 150 rupees ($2.70, £1.70) a day, is marked absent if he doesn't report for work on time. India belongs to rich people only," he says.
Meanwhile, the petitioners say they will continue to contest the case till the very end because they think the car owners in Delhi are being treated unfairly.
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Air Pollution News & Alerts - October 14th, 2012
Global Times, October 13th, 2012
MEP pushes for new air quality stats in China.
Times of India, October 13th, 2012
Even air over Vellalore dump yard is polluted.
UB Post, October 13th, 2012
Ways to Improve Air Quality in Ulaanbaatar.
Air Quality News, October 12th, 2012
Europe ‘some way off’ achieving air quality goal.
Science Daily, October 12th, 2012
Exposure to Traffic Air Pollution in Infancy Impairs Lung Function in Children.
Ship and Bunker, October 12th, 2012
Pollution from Vessels Up in Hong Kong.
The Guardian, October 12th, 2012
Oil prices set to fall, forecasts IEA.
Nature, October 12th, 2012
Megacities pose serious health challenge.
China Daily, October 11th, 2012
China strives to meet air quality standard deadline.
Environmental Health News, October 11th, 2012
Beijing Olympics: Healthy adults benefit from lower air pollution.
The Guardian, October 11th, 2012
Why do we play down the horror of climate change?
The Guardian, October 11th, 2012
Norway to double carbon tax on oil industry.
The CityFix, October 11th, 2012
Building the Sustainable City of The Future in India.
Times of India, October 10th, 2012
Report raises alarm over Jaipur’s air quality.
BBC, October 10th, 2012
US researchers map carbon emissions at street level.
Power Engineering, October 9th, 2012
A Particulate Mess: The Proposed NAAQS PM2.5.
China Daily, October 9th, 2012
Pollution blind spot in the textile industry.
Express India, October 8th, 2012
Rs 15-crore plan to predict air quality, rate UVR dose approved.
Climate Progress, October 3rd, 2012
Why EPA Must Appeal A Court Ruling Against The Cross State Air Pollution Rule.
NRDC Switchboard, October 1st, 2012
A Decade of Progress at Southern California Ports.
All Africa, October 1st, 2012
Africa: Indoor Pollution Increases Death Rate.
Saturday, October 06, 2012
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