A breath of fresh air: First smog tower installed in Delhi to fight pollution

NEW DELHI: India on Monday put in a $3 million smog tower in New Delhi to combat air pollution within the “world’s most polluted capital,” which has for years reported a deteriorating air high quality index.
New Delhi, which boasts a inhabitants of 30 million, retained the highest spot on the earth’s 50 most polluted cities for the third straight yr in 2020, in response to IQAir, a Swiss group that measures air high quality ranges primarily based on the focus of lung-damaging airborne particles often called PM2.5.
India accounted for 35 different cities on IQAir’s World Air High quality Report, which collated information from 106 international locations.
Inaugurating the 24-meter excessive tower within the Rajiv Chowk space of central Delhi on Monday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal stated it will enhance air high quality inside a 1 km radius by purifying “1,000 cubic meters of air per second.”
“By no means earlier than within the nation (has) such a way been used and nobody has tried to scrub the air this manner,” Kejriwal stated.
“We have now imported the approach from the US. It has been put in on an experimental foundation,” he added.
Constructed with cement and metal, the smog tower is fitted with 5,000 filters which work in a cyclical format, drawing in polluted air and releasing its purified model.
To gauge its efficacy, Kejriwal stated information retrieved from the tower could be analysed by the Indian Institute of Know-how in Delhi and Mumbai.
“Whether it is discovered to be efficient, then many towers like this will likely be put in in Delhi,” Kejriwal stated, including {that a} second tower is scheduled to be erected in east Delhi by September.
The initiative provides a breath of contemporary air for 1000’s of residents within the metropolis grappling with air pollution which, in response to a research final yr, was the main trigger for a 40 p.c improve in lung most cancers instances amongst non-smokers prior to now 10 years.
Earlier this yr, the Centre for Science and Setting, a New Delhi-based environmental suppose tank, stated in its report that the seasonal common of air pollution throughout winter in Delhi and its adjoining areas was increased in 2020/21 than within the earlier cycle.
In January final yr, the Supreme Courtroom ordered the Delhi authorities and the Central Air pollution Management Board to arrange towers in two areas within the capital by April. This plan was thrown off observe by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Specialists, nevertheless, questioned the effectiveness of the smog towers, calling on the federal government to nip air pollution in its bud.
“We don’t know the efficacy of the smog tower and the way a lot it’s going to tackle the ambient air pollution,” Vivek Chattopadhyay, a senior programme supervisor for air air pollution on the CSE, instructed Arab Information.
“We must always commit our sources to manage air pollution at its supply. It’s extremely questionable, and there’s no consensus among the many scientific neighborhood whether or not a smog tower is an efficient machine to manage air pollution,” Chattopadhyay stated, including: “A smog tower can work higher indoors reasonably than exterior.”
Docs stated a smog tower may work as a makeshift answer however not as a everlasting one.
“It is a injury management measure that may restrict the publicity of inhabitants to a sure degree however not a sureshot thought to scrub up the air,” Dr. Mayank Saxena, a senior chest specialist on the Noida-based Yatharth Hospital, instructed Arab Information.
He defined how ailments reminiscent of bronchial asthma and bronchitis are on the rise, drawing consideration to the impression {that a} extreme or worse air high quality index (AQI) can have on COVID-19 sufferers.
“For me, the busiest days are from September to December when the air pollution is excessive … We get numerous new sufferers affected by respiratory issues, but in addition we see acute struggling for many who have already got respiratory issues,” Dr. Saxena stated.
“A research has discovered that the AQI additionally has an amazing impression on COVID-19 sufferers who’ve been uncovered to air pollution. They endure extra due to a foul AQI, and the severity of their medical situation worsens.”