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AIR POLLUTION

Clearing smog’s particulate problem

Nature Geoscience volume 14, pages 59–60 (2021)Cite this article

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Chloride-rich particulate matter has been identified as a major contributor to air-quality deterioration in cities across India. Identification and reduction of chloride emissions could therefore improve visibility and human health across the region.

Most of Northern India experiences poor air quality during the winter. Dense smog over the capital, Delhi, negatively affects the lives of millions1,2 and causes transport and other disruptions, which result in heavy economic losses3. Particulate matter is recognized as a major contributing pollutant, and over the last decade understanding of its sources, seasonal variability1, chemical composition, and interaction with meteorology has improved2,4,5. But some important questions remained unanswered. For example, it is unclear what precise role particulate matter plays in visibility reduction given that Delhi experiences far greater visibility reduction than other polluted cities in Asia. Writing in Nature Geoscience, Gunthe et al.6 reveal that locally emitted hydrochloric acid from plastic-contained waste burning and industrial sources accounts for some 50% of the visibility reduction over the Indian capital under suitable meteorological conditions.

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Fig. 1: India Gate shrouded in smog during winter 2019.

Ruhani Kaur/Bloomberg via Getty Images

References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. SAFAR-India, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (Ministry of Earth Sciences), Pune, India

    Gufran Beig

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  1. Gufran Beig
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Correspondence to Gufran Beig.

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Beig, G. Clearing smog’s particulate problem. Nat. Geosci. 14, 59–60 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-021-00687-3

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