Air pollution in India has become a huge problem, especially because of the rise in population, industrialization, and per capita income. In 2001 the growth rate in urban India was 17.97% and estimates have it that in 2000 there was 40 million vehicles driven in India with 30% being in 12 major cities (Nagdeve, 2004). Such increases have led to a significant rise in the number of cars being driven in India. Cities are the industrial hubs of a nation and as the cities have grown in India, industrialization has also grown. However, the lack of planning in placement of industries have led to them being placed in urban and suburban areas that along with vehicle emissions has led to dangerous levels of air pollution. Currently in India 1.5 billion people are exposed to dangerous levels of air pollution and 673,000 of those die each year from air pollution related diseases, such as respiratory illnesses (Nagdeve, 2004).
Most people focus on respiratory diseases in discussions related to air pollution. However, more research needs to look at how air pollution can also have an effect on vitamin D deficiencies among children. Children living in slums are already at high risk for developing vitamin D deficiency because their families cannot afford to purchase foods that have vitamin D and they are not able to grow such foods. Therefore, the main source of vitamin D for those children would be from the sun’s ultraviolet B radiation that causes the formation of vitamin D on the skin. However, when pollution is high the haze blocks the radiation from reaching the skin. Slums are most likely to be affected by air pollution because industries, if given the chance, build factories closer to the slums rather than more modern areas of a city. A study was conducted that compared prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among children in a highly polluted area of Delhi and among those living in less polluted areas of Delhi. The study looked at 34 children and found that twelve children in the areas of high pollution were vitamin D deficient and three were severely deficient. Thus, governments need to realize the far reaching health impacts of pollution and how the poor are often most affected.
The biggest source of vehicular air pollution is motorized two wheeled vehicles, which makes up 2/3rds of the total vehicles in India (Badami, 2005). The two wheeled vehicles are more popular than four wheeled vehicles because they are more affordable. Interestingly enough, these smaller vehicles actually produce more carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons than buses (Badami, 2005). The cause of pollution from these vehicles largely comes from the lack of maintenance that would reduce the emissions, and from the intense congestion of the roads. Road congestion in India is largely due to inadequate road infrastructure and lack of traffic control which increases carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons emissions per vehicle-kilometer by 200% or more (Badami, 2005, 197).
Buying of vehicles is not going to slow down anytime soon as population and incomes keep growing. Therefore, India must begin to invest in programs and policies that will curb the amount of air pollution. One of the major policies that India is introducing to alleviate this problem is to increase limited access expressways in order to alleviate traffic. Another policy that may not be as costly and will help control the amount of pollution in the air is increasing urban tree planting. While there is little hard empirical evidence about the impact urban trees has on air quality overall, urban vegetation can reduce ozone formation through reduction in the heat island effect (Pataki, 2011). The United States has also recognized the potential benefits of urban vegetation. In the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, it is stated that for every 100 trees planted, 300 pounds of air pollution and 15 tons of carbon dioxide in the air is removed (Pataki, 2011, 33).
Looking at long term solutions, India will have to invest in alternative fuel sources for vehicles, as the US has begun to do in recent years. This is the only way to ensure that significant reductions in emissions will be made in the future in the transportation sector. One of the major projects that the Indian government is looking into is electric cars. The Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources developed this program to develop and deploy battery operated vehicles. The downfall of the current project is that the ministry is relying on lead batteries, which have a limited life span and limit the driving range. Therefore, the ministry will have to look into rechargeable lithium batteries in the future (“Renewable Energy,” 2007, 67). Air pollution is a worldwide problem, and while India does not necessarily have an equal share in worldwide carbon emissions, the air pollution in India is causing very localized problems that must be addressed.
References:
Agarwal, K.S., et al. (2002). The impact of atmospheric pollution on vitamin D status of infants
and toddlers in delhi, india. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 87: 111-113. Retrieved from http://adc.bmj.com/content/87/2/111.full
Badami, M.G. (2005). Transport and urban air pollution in india. Environmental Management,
36(2): 195-204. Retrieved from http://www.regionomics.com/INDUS/Badami-envl_mgmt.pdf
Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Status in India. (2007). ICLEI South Asia Report.
Nagdeve, D.A. (2004). Urban air pollution and its influence on health in india. ENVIS, 1(3).
Retrieved from http://www.iipsenvis.nic.in/Newsletters/vol1no3/Nagdeve.htm
Pataki, D.E., et. al. (2011). Coupling biogeochemical cycles in urban environments: ecosystem
services, green solutions, and misconceptions. Front Ecological Environment, 9(1): 27-36.
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