VIJAYAWADA: The AP Pollution Control Board has contradicted the pollution value arrived at by the National Green Tribunal for Vijayawada. In a letter to the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) and Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the APPCB has stated that the recent notice served by the NGT citing Comprehensive Environment Pollution Index (CEPI) value at 64 in Vijayawada, was incorrect. The correct figure was 30.7, it said.
“While the value according to our calculation is around 30 in Vijayawada, the NGT, based on its figures, has directed us to immediately close down industrial units. But the city does not have any industries. Where are the industries to be shut down?” asked APPCB chairperson BSS Prasad, adding that pollution in Vijayawada is largely caused by vehicular traffic, dust on roads and the national highway that passes through the city.
Source apportionment study by March
The prescribed value for CEPI, which is measured on the basis of various parameters - mainly particulate matter (PM) value - is 50. He further said that the board has requested MoEF and CPCB to question methods used by NGT in arriving at such a high CEPI value. He also questioned the sudden notice from NGT, despite the board’s regular submission of the required data to the tribunal.
The ministry had sanctioned `10.40 crore as grant-in-aid for non-attainment cities - Vijayawada, Guntur, Nellore, Kurnool and Visakhapatnam. Of this amount, `7.7 crore is being used for installing five Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) in Vijayawada, of which one has already been installed by the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation, after the APPCB’s direction post their measurement results. This apart, Vijayawada has been allocated `2.3 crore for improving greenery.
The remaining has been divided among Guntur (`20,00,000), Nellore and Kurnool (10 lakh each) for public awareness, capacity building and installation of manual monitoring stations. The PCB has directed the VMC to also procure two mechanical street sweepers (dust-sucking machines) and three water sprinklers.
However, VMC commissioner V Prasanna Venkatesh has claimed the corporation received a directive from APPCB to complete the anti-pollution measures before March 2020 only two days ago. “These directions which were sent to the PCB officials by the ministry after the meeting held in New Delhi in June were forwarded to us just two days ago. But, we are sure of completing the works before the deadline as we have already started taking measures on a war footing,” said Venkatesh.
Meanwhile, along with completion of these works, the APPCB will also release a source apportionment study, which will state which source - dust, coal burning, hotel kitchens releasing toxic air, if any - is causing what percentage of suspended particulate matter in Vijayawada, by March next year.