VIJAYAWADA: The State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) has come up with an action plan with short-term, mid-term and long-term goals to fight against air pollution across the State and improve the air quality.
After the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) identified five cities from the State as polluted in respect of Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM), the State pollution control board came up with this action plan following a nod from the National Green Tribunal (NGT). Based on the five-year data, CPCB has identified Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntur, Nellore and Kurnool cities from the State as polluted areas, which are considered to have air quality worse than the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, in respect of RSPM.
The NGT had given directions to the State pollution control board in October 2018 to come up with an action plan for reducing the pollution levels in these places.APPCB then constituted a six-member committee with members from departments of Transport, Industries, Municipal Administration and Urban Development, among others.
The committee designed action plans and submitted them to the NGT, and those were approved. Currently, APPCB is convening meetings and workshops with each stakeholding department and working towards reducing the air pollution levels.
According to the APPCB officials, the particulate matters register little height in the winter season due to the presence of fog conditions and a cooler climate.