The document discusses air pollution issues in Delhi, India and provides comparisons to air quality in Burma and Finland. It notes that Delhi has very high levels of particulate matter pollution due to vehicle emissions, waste burning, construction, and industry. In contrast, Finland has the cleanest air in the world due to low population density, thick forest cover comprising 73% of its land, and government initiatives promoting renewable energy and protecting the environment. While Burma also suffers from air pollution problems related to transportation, waste burning and solid fuel use for cooking, its forest cover helps absorb pollutants but industry and agriculture also contribute to the country's air quality issues.
3. Motor vehicle emissions
Wood-burning fires and fires on
agricultural land,
Exhaust from diesel generators,
Dust from construction sites,
Burning garbage and illegal industrial
activities in Delhi.
CAUSES OF POOR AIR QUALITY IN
DELHI
4. DUST POLLUTION AT
CONSTRUCTION SITES
POLLUTION FROM OPEN
BURNING OF LEAVES,
GARBAGE, PLASTIC,
LANDFILLS ETC
ILLEGAL INDUSTRIAL
ACTIVITIES
HEAVY TRAFFIC
5. TYPES OF POLLUTANTS &
THEIR SOURCES
The most abundant and harmful pollutants include:
1. Primary pollutant is an air pollutant emitted directly
from a source like-
a. Carbon Monoxide b. Sulphur Oxides
c. Nitrogen Oxides d. Particulate Matter
2. Secondary pollutant is not directly emitted as such, but
forms when other pollutants (primary pollutants) react in
the atmosphere and causes -
a. Ground level ozone (bad ozone found in troposphere)
b. Smog c. Green house effect d. Acid rain
e. Ozone depletion
* Good ozone is found in Stratosphere.
6. Types of Sources
There are four main types of air pollution
sources:
mobile sources – such as cars, buses, planes,
trucks, and trains
stationary sources – such as power plants,
oil refineries, industrial facilities, and factories
area sources – such as agricultural areas,
cities, and wood burning fireplaces
natural sources – such as wind-blown dust,
wildfires, and volcanoes
14. Develop Compost pits at parks
and gardens and use the manure.
SIMPLE MEASURES TO CONTROL BURNING
OF LEAVES IN PARKS AND GARDENS
15.
16. •Conserve energy - at home, at work, everywhere.
•Carpool, use public transportation, bike, or walk
whenever possible.
•Keep car, bikes, and other engines properly tuned.
•Be sure your tyres are properly inflated.
•Use environmentally safe paints and cleaning
products whenever possible.
•Reduce or eliminate fireplace and wood stove use.
•Avoid burning leaves, trash, and other materials.
•Mulch or compost leaves and yard waste.
•Grow more & more Air Purifier Plants like, Snake
plant, Peace lily, Areca Palm, Lady Palm, Bamboo
palm, Rubber plant, Spider Plant, English Ivy , Pathos
etc.
Actions You Can Take to Reduce Air Pollution
17. Benefits of growing indoor plants
• Indoor plants don’t just look good – they make us feel good mentally
and physically, too. Studies have shown indoor plants can:
• Boost morale, productivity, concentration, and creativity
• Reduce stress, fatigue, sore throats, and colds
• Improve indoor air quality by absorbing toxins, increasing humidity,
and producing oxygen
21. Report: New Delhi Ranked World's Most Polluted
Capital City
A study by Greenpeace and Swiss-based IQ AirVisual found the average
amount of fine particulate matter, known as PM2.5, in New Delhi
was 113.5 last year, more than double the level in Beijing.
The report said New Delhi's toxic air was caused by vehicle and industrial
emissions, smoke from burning rubbish and crop residue, and dust from
construction sites.
Fifteen of the world's 20 most polluted cities are in
India, including Ghaziabad and Faridabad, the report
found.
22. WHO: Finland has the world's cleanest air
After crowing itself the top spot at the World's Happiness Report and the safest
city to travel, Finland has added the most coveted badge of the cleanest air!
According to the latest report of the World Health Organisation, Finland stood
first leaving behind 4 000 cities in 108 countries.
Finland sits at the top of the list with a score of 90.68 in Environment
Performance Index.
The report, commissioned by the Yale Center for Environmental Law and
Policy, said: "Finland's goal of consuming 38 per cent of their final energy from
renewable sources by 2020 is legally binding, and they already produce nearly
two-thirds of their electricity from renewable or nuclear power sources."
23. Five reasons why Finland has the cleanest air in the world
1. No pollutants -The concentration of fine particles in Finland is less than
six micrograms per cubic metre, which is less than the lowest level on the
globe.
2. No industrial waste
3. Less population-Finland has as less as 55 people living with an
average population density of 17 inhabitants per square kilometre.
4. Thick forest cover-It has 11th largest green cover in the world. There 73 per cent firs,
birches and oaks and 95 per cent of Suriname.
5. Government initiatives-The government invests in renewable
energy, protects forests and lakes, and promotes the adoption of
electric vehicles.
24. Myanmar’s air pollution among the worst in the
world: WHO
The main sources of outdoor air pollution in Myanmar include “inefficient modes of transport,
inefficient combustion of household fuels for cooking, lighting and heating, coal-fired power plants,
industrial agriculture and waste burning.”
A very high proportion of households still rely on the use of solid fuel – such as wood, crop waste,
charcoal, coal and dung – for cooking purposes: up to 95 percent in rural areas and 81 percent in urban
areas.
This creates high emissions of particulate matter indoors and contributes to high levels of pollutants in
ambient air.
25. Air Quality Index of India(Delhi), Burma and Finland on April 28, 2019
26. Forest cover of Myanmar, Finland
Graph between year and percentage of forest cover.