Vizag's vicious air pollution

All the buzz about Vizag gaining momentum and the city witnessing rapid development at all fronts is very good. But as every coin has two sides, development too has another side, which is pollution. Air pollution has grown tremendously in the city, especially in the last 10 years.

Apart from industries, rise in the number of vehicles hitting Vizag's roads too has risen quite steeply in the last decade. Dust and fly ash from industries such as NTPC, Steel Plant, HPCL and the Port Trust haunts people living in their vicinity. The Old Town grapples with acute air pollution due to the fly ash from the coal handling berths of the Vizag Port. These operations should be shifted completely from Vizag Port to the Gangavaram Port to curb pollution in the city. Fly ash from NTPC is another major source of air pollution due to the coal used by the thermal power plant.

Long term goals of a complete shift to renewable sources like solar and hydroelectricity should be on the cards so as to cease the perennial pollution caused by the thermal power plants. HPCL and other industries dottting the central part of the city beside the airport release pungent gases just before rains causing adverse effects to the health of residents in the adjoining areas like Gajuwaka, Malkapuram and Scindia. Alternate ways of waste gas emission should be thought of to prevent this.

Surprisingly, there is no part of the city that isn't affected by air pollution, thanks to vehicular exhaust and burning of solid waste. Vehicular pollution, consisting of sulphur and nitrogen dioxides apart from other noxius fumes threatens the clean and green city, lowering the air quality. The Metro Rail should be completed as soon as possible and public transport like buses be used by citizens so that both air pollution and traffic can be decreased. Burning of solid waste is another reason for air quality degradation throughoit the city.

Instead of landfill disposal or other safe methods, incineration and burning of wastes is done in many areas. These fumes, from burning plastic are carcinogenic and should be avoided at all costs. Citizens should be made more aware about recycling wastes and composting biodegradable waste in pits. If all the above suggestions are followed by the citizens and the local government, Vizag is bound to take long strides in air quality index improvement as well, apart from development.