Air quality improves; will get better now, says SAFAR

Diwali celebrations at Ashtavinayak Chowk in Thane. (Express Phoot by Deepak Joshi)

After a week of facing increased air pollution that peaked on Friday, Mumbaikars can finally breathe easy. The air quality in the city improved on Saturday, according to data compiled by the System of Air Quality Forecasting and Research (SAFAR). The Air Quality Index (AQI) on Saturday showed moderate pollution levels, with PM10 at 141 µg/m³ and PM2.5 at 87 µg/m³.

Pollution levels in the city had risen on Friday with the AQI showing very poor air quality as PM2.5 levels were at 145 and PM10 at 237 µg/m³. Malad was one of the worst affected, with PM2.5 touching a severe level of 436 µg/m³ and PM10 standing at a high of 333 µg/m³. PM2.5 are small particles that can enter the bloodstream through the lungs.

Speaking on the improved air quality, activist Sumaira Abdulali said, “The pollutants may have moved out of the air but since there is no strong breeze it would not have moved far. It would either be sedimented on the sea or on the ground. Unless there is a strong weather pattern change, it is unlikely to move out.”

While pollution level in Mumbai was worse than Pune on Saturday, it fared better than Delhi and Ahmedabad. SAFAR’s observations revealed that Andheri, Borivali and Navi Mumbai were the worst affected as they had poor air quality with PM2.5 levels of 222, 269 and 260 µg/m³, respectively.

According to SAFAR’s forecast, the air quality will further improve on Sunday and Monday.

Meanwhile, overall noise pollution in the city during Diwali also dipped this year, according to Awaaz Foundation.”

“The trend of noise pollution coming down over the past several years continued in Mumbai this year, although peak decibel levels in the night beyond 10pm increased from last yea”,” reads the report by the Foundation. The maximum noise level of 117.8 dB was recorded at Marine Drive around midnight and exceeded last year’s maximum of 113 dB.”

“While peak noise levels increased, the use of firecrackers has visibly come down. Though peak decibel levels increased, overall noise levels have reduced. Noise levels were mainly recorded between 10 pm to 1 am. In particular, we noticed a drop in use of noisy firecrackers. We had tested the firecrackers and harmful ones were banned. We did not find them being sold. This could have made a difference,” added Abdulali, who is the founder of Awaaz Foundation.

“Post 10pm, the deadline for use of firecrackers, there was an increased use of noisy fireworks at Marine Drive and noise levels were near constantly over 100dB. The fireworks used were mostly anars with a crackling sound and aerial firecrackers. Very few ‘atom bombs’ and ‘serial bombs’ were used this year,” added the report”

“In terms of noise, there has been an increase in awareness which has helped. However, we still have a long way to go to tackle air pollution. There has not been much awareness and that reflects in our air quality,” she added.