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Air quality in megacity Delhi affected by countryside biomass burning

Author

Listed:
  • Srinivas Bikkina

    (Stockholm University)

  • August Andersson

    (Stockholm University)

  • Elena N. Kirillova

    (Stockholm University)

  • Henry Holmstrand

    (Stockholm University)

  • Suresh Tiwari

    (Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Regional Centre)

  • A. K. Srivastava

    (Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Regional Centre)

  • D. S. Bisht

    (Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Regional Centre)

  • Örjan Gustafsson

    (Stockholm University)

Abstract

South Asian megacities are strong sources of regional air pollution. Delhi is a key hotspot of health- and climate-impacting black carbon (BC) emissions, affecting environmental sustainability in densely populated northern India. Effective mitigation of BC impact is hampered by highly uncertain emission source estimates. Here, we use dual-carbon isotope fingerprints (δ13C/∆14C) of BC to constrain the seasonal source variability in Delhi. These measurements show that lower BC concentrations in summer are predominantly from fossil fuel sources (~83%). However, large-scale open burning of post-harvest crop residue/wood in nearby rural regions is contributing to severe haze pollution in Delhi during winter and autumn (~42 ± 17%). Hence, the common conception that megacities affect their surroundings is here amended or seasonally reversed. Therefore, to combat the severe air pollution problems in Delhi and the environmental quality of northern India, current urban efforts need to be complemented with countryside regional mitigation.

Suggested Citation

  • Srinivas Bikkina & August Andersson & Elena N. Kirillova & Henry Holmstrand & Suresh Tiwari & A. K. Srivastava & D. S. Bisht & Örjan Gustafsson, 2019. "Air quality in megacity Delhi affected by countryside biomass burning," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 2(3), pages 200-205, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natsus:v:2:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1038_s41893-019-0219-0
    DOI: 10.1038/s41893-019-0219-0
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Downing, Andrea S. & Kumar, Manish & Andersson, August & Causevic, Amar & Gustafsson, Örjan & Joshi, Niraj U. & Krishnamurthy, Chandra Kiran B. & Scholtens, Bert & Crona, Beatrice, 2022. "Unlocking the unsustainable rice-wheat system of Indian Punjab: Assessing alternatives to crop-residue burning from a systems perspective," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).
    2. Teevrat Garg & Maulik Jagnani & Hemant K. Pullabhotla, 2022. "Structural transformation and environmental externalities," Papers 2212.02664, arXiv.org.
    3. Mariel, Petr & Khan, Mohammad Asif & Meyerhoff, Jürgen, 2022. "Valuing individuals’ preferences for air quality improvement: Evidence from a discrete choice experiment in South Delhi," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 432-447.
    4. Singh, Prachi & Dey, Sagnik, 2021. "Crop burning and forest fires: Long-term effect on adolescent height in India," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    5. Ruoyu Lan & Sebastian D. Eastham & Tianjia Liu & Leslie K. Norford & Steven R. H. Barrett, 2022. "Air quality impacts of crop residue burning in India and mitigation alternatives," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-13, December.
    6. Yang, Lan & Wang, Xue-Chao & Dai, Min & Chen, Bin & Qiao, Yuanbo & Deng, Huijing & Zhang, Dingfan & Zhang, Yizhe & Villas Bôas de Almeida, Cecília Maria & Chiu, Anthony S.F. & Klemeš, Jiří Jaromír & W, 2021. "Shifting from fossil-based economy to bio-based economy: Status quo, challenges, and prospects," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 228(C).
    7. Balakrishnan, Uttara & Tsaneva, Magda, 2021. "Air pollution and academic performance: Evidence from India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).

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