AIR POLLUTION ALERT IN ROURKELA : STEEL CITY UNDER DANGER ZONE

(The Quiver) : Severe air pollution is choking Rourkela. The quality of air in the city is degrading day by day . The air quality Index  of Rourkela city sticks at dangerous level , which is over 150 . Thick blanket of dusts and polluted air are making survival difficult for the people.

As per the experts , the air condition will continue for few more days. There are various reasons known to have contributed in air pollution in Rourkela which includes- vehicular and industrial pollution , forest fires, and bio mass burning.

The Head of the Department (HoD) of Mining Engineering department, Himanshu Bhushan Sahu said the air pollution experienced these days in the city is primarily due to vehicular and industrial pollution. “Bio-mass burning and forest fire have also their share of contribution towards the deteriorating air quality”. 

“The pollutants remain concentrated in the lower atmosphere because the atmospheric conditions required for dispersion of pollutants, air circulation and comparatively lower temperature in the upper level being two of them, are not occurring due to some reasons,” pointed Sahu. 

“In Rourkela city, all the parameters required to calculate AQI are above the normal level. The average concentration of PM 2.5 (suspended pollutant 2.5 micron or smaller) in the city is above 80ug/m3 whereas it should be 60ug/m3. Similarly, the average concentration of PM 10 should be 100ug/m3 in the city. But it is now above 150ug/m3,” Sahu informed. 

“If the presence of pollutants in the air crosses 100 or 150ug/m3, it will be certainly detrimental to health,” Sahu added.