How can You fight air pollution
Several times each year we see a significant fall in air quality, but it's pretty rare when we see some significant improvement. Even if there is some improvement it's when government wakes up and imposes some regulation and that’s the main issue. We as citizens, as individuals forgot our duty and power and what can we do alone.
Let's not underestimate an individual's power to contribute to this change. A citizen voice and their actions are an integral part of this fight
We must learn from this pandemic! Human civilization is so fragile and one natural crisis, whichever form it may come in can shut everything down completely! Climate change will do the exact same thing, but it is here to stay and will progressively get worse and alter many many factors about life as we know it. If we think staying in our homes is bad, how about having to abandon your home because it's flooded, or caught up in a terrible fire, or simply in a place that is uninhabitable anymore. The climate crisis creates many more issues than this coronavirus yet we are doing absolutely nothing to stop it.
We as individuals always underestimate what we can do to preserve the environment, and trust me we can do enough to make a change and no one need to do something big but just small basic changes in our day-to-day lifestyle would make a significant difference. Here are some basic lifestyle changes that would benefit both you and the environment.
Say ‘no’ to plastic
On paper, there is no open-waste burning in India. Off paper, however, we manage our waste much, much slower than the rate at which we produce waste. A lot of the waste is plastics, and their burning releases numerous carcinogens and other pollutants into the air.
Plastic is commonly burnt in residential areas and in places where waste is heaped before its transport, as well as in landfills (some of which can be spotted from space). Always carry a spare bag with you in case you need to carry any goods, instead of getting a plastic bag from the store.
Plant, and save, trees
Trees are an integral part of our environment and very important for our survival. At an individual level least you can do is plant a tree or a plant at your house or nearby park. Otherwise, we have to constantly fight to save our trees from being felled (as in Delhi) and our lakes from being lost (as in Hyderabad) for redevelopment. Trees help keep the temperature down, provide shade and prevent dust from settling on the ground and reduce ambient particulate pollution levels. A recent study from the University of Surrey demonstrated a 30% drop in pollution exposure on roads with hedges.
So, if we had to do bring some change we have to start from our home our locality. Plant more trees force authorities to create more park, plant more trees, and also put a voice out for preventing trees from cutting
Power down and conserve
Use as many LED lights as possible and optimize the number of electrical fixtures in your house. This will not reduce the rate of power production at the power plants but any power not diverted to cities goes to the rural areas, where it is needed more. If the temperature outside is 40° C, do not set the air conditioner to cool the air to 18°C. Instead, setting it at 22-25° C conserves power and prolongs the machine’s life.
For those with solar and wind-based generation systems at home: more power to you.
Should look forward to renewable sources of energy like solar panels, they are not just good for the environment but cost efficient in the long run. So by moving toward solar energy you are not just helping the environment but your pocket too.
Cycle and walk more
The more you cycle and walk, the more emissions can be averted on the road. There are arguments against cycling during rush hours saying its health benefits are lost due to increased exposure to harmful levels of pollution. The counterargument is to present the statistical picture.
If like you, a hundred other drivers ditched their cars or motorcycles and started cycling or walking, then there would be that much less pollution. Second: the greater the number of cyclists on the roads, the more the pressure on the city to provide the requisite infrastructure.
Our cities’ authorities are able to have flyovers and parking lots cleared and constructed with awful ease, and the only beneficiary is the car driver; indeed, the benefits are debatable because road-widening exercises often seem unable to reduce, let alone eliminate, congestion. This is because governments are under pressure to deliver more car-friendly spaces to support higher motor-vehicle sales. A similar sort of pressure should apply vis-à-vis walkers and cyclists as well.
In the Netherlands, cyclists rule the roads. In Amsterdam’s traffic-demand management, cyclists are often prioritized because most people use non-motorized transport. It is likely that every one of those cyclists also owns a car or a scooter but prefer using cycle when they can access cycler-friendly conditions. Most of their trips are also small – about 3-5 km (PDF) – and the government provides safe paths for adults and children to walk or cycle on.
Use public transport or carpool once a week
If you use a car for your daily commute, it is likely you are spending 30-120 minutes driving every day (or more in some cases). If, however, you used public transport or carpooled once a week, it can translate to environmental and health benefits. For example, at an average speed of 15-20 km/h (during rush hour) and average mileage of 15-20 km/liter, a two-hour commute translates two 2 liters of fuel, about Rs 150. This is fuel saved, money saved, emissions averted, and one day of stress-free commute.
One must acknowledge that we use public transportation where possible because a growing challenge in Indian cities has been access to a public transportation system that is reliable, comfortable, safe, and with first/last-mile connectivity. For example, a 1997 white paper and a 2018 action plan, both to address Delhi’s air pollution problem, suggested the city use 15,000 buses. However, the city increased its fleet size from 2,000 buses to only 4,000. It’s a similar story in other Indian cities, and till the day the issue is resolved, carpooling can be something to look forward to.
If you see something, say something
Data is the missing link for understanding local air pollution levels and for action on the ground. There is scattered information, often from one or two official monitors in most cities (other than the big ones like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad). This is not enough to capture a reasonably accurate picture of transport emissions, industrial activities, and burning events in the city. So, if you see something, you should say something. There is now a nearly constant flow of complaints on the Central Pollution Control Board’s Twitter feed. Though this is a young account, it can eventually be used for compliance assessment and to understand local emission loads.
These are some simple things that we can keep an eye on, and so contribute to making the air in our cities cleaner. Even though these are individual decisions, the overarching government policy can nudge behavior in the direction that many individuals choose. If the government builds freeways with no safe walking or cycling paths and provides no regular buses and other public transport, citizens will have no option but to use private vehicles. But if it provides sustainable alternatives, there’s no reason the people shouldn’t use them. Ultimately, individual actions are consequences of government policy.
Last you should make your voice heard, that’s your biggest power, speak up for your belief, and demand. Force government and political parties to treat it as an equally important issue as economy and employment. Making environment an agenda force authorities in the direction towards reducing pollution. Spread Awareness through various different means.
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