Spatio-temporal distribution and source contributions of the ambient pollutants in Lucknow city, India.

Clean air is imperative to the survival of all life forms on the planet. However, recent times have witnessed enormous escalation in urban pollution levels. It is therefore, incumbent upon us to decipher measures to deal with it. In perspective, the present study was carried out to assess PM10 and PM2.5 loading, metallic constituents, gaseous pollutants, source contributions, health impact and noise level of nine-locations, grouped as residential, commercial, and industrial in Lucknow city for 2019-21. Mean concentrations during pre-monsoon for PM10, PM2.5, SO2 and NO2 were: 138.2 ± 35.2, 69.1 ± 13.6, 8.5 ± 3.3 and 32.3 ± 7.4 µg/m3, respectively, whereas post-monsoon concentrations were 143.0 ± 33.3, 74.6 ± 14.5, 12.5 ± 2.1, and 35.5 ± 6.3 µg/m3, respectively. Exceedance percentage of pre-monsoon PM10 over National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) was 38.2% while that for post-monsoon was 43.0%; whereas corresponding values for PM2.5 were 15.2% and 24.3%. Post-monsoon season showed higher particulate loading owing to wintertime inversion and high humidity conditions. Order of elements associated with PM2.5 is Co < Cd < Cr < Ni < V < Be < Mo < Mn < Ti < Cu < Pb < Se < Sr < Li < B < As < Ba < Mg < Al < Zn < Ca < Fe < K < Na and that with PM10 is Co < Cd < Ni < Cr < V < Ti < Be < Mo < Cu < Pb < Se < Sr < Li < B < As < Mn < Ba < Mg < Al < Fe < Zn < K < Na < Ca. WHO AIRQ + ascertained 1654, 144 and 1100 attributable cases per 0.1 million of population to PM10 exposure in 2019-21. Source apportionment was carried out using USEPA-PMF and resolved 6 sources with highest percent contributions including road dust re-entrainment, biomass burning and vehicular emission. It is observed that residents of Lucknow city regularly face exposure to particulate pollutants and associated constituents making it imperative to develop pollution abetment strategies.

Chemical characterization of PM10 and PM2.5 combusted firecracker particles during Diwali of Lucknow City, India: air-quality deterioration and health implications.

Urban air pollution is a growing menace leading to human discomfort, increased hospitalizations, morbidity, and mortality. This study deals with deteriorated air quality due to firecracker bursting during Diwali in Lucknow. Inhalable particulates and gaseous pollutants were monitored during Diwali 2020 using air samplers. Elements, ions, and surface morphology of particles were analyzed using ICP-MS, ion chromatograph, and SEM-EDX, respectively. PM10, PM2.5, SO2, and NO2 were 558, 352, 44, and 86 µg/m3 during Diwali night and 233, 101, 17, and 40 µg/m3 on pre-Diwali night while 241, 122, 24, and 43 µg/m3 on Diwali day. Concentrations surged for PM10: 139% and 132%, PM2.5: 249% and 189%, SO2: 159% and 83%, and NO2: 115% and 100% on Diwali night compared to pre-Diwali night and corresponding Diwali day, respectively. Al, K, Ba, and B showed dominance in PM10 whereas Zn, Al, Ba, and K in PM2.5 on Diwali night. The order of metal abundance in PM2.5 was Cd < Co < Ag < As < Cr < Ni < Cu < Bi < Pb < Mn < Sr < Fe < B < Zn < Al < Ba < K. Cations NH4+, K+, Mg2+, Ca2+, and anions F-, Cl-, NO3-, Br-, NO2-, SO4-2, PO43- showed a 2-8 fold increase on Diwali night relative to pre-Diwali night. Average metal concentrations varied by 2.2, 1.6, and 0.09 times on Diwali than pre-Diwali in residential, commercial, and industrial areas, respectively. PM10 concentration increased by 458% and 1140% while PM2.5, 487%, and 2247% than respective NAAQS and WHO standards. Tiny firecracker particles vary in toxicity as compared to vehicular emissions and have enhanced bioavailability leading to severe threat in terms of LRI, COPD, and atherosclerosis for city dwellers. It is imperative to recognize the present status of ambient air quality and implement regulatory strategies for emission reduction.

Spatial distribution of physicochemical-bacteriological parametric quality and water quality index of Gomti River, India.

Surface water bodies are vital source of water for human consumption, domestic needs, agriculture, industrial activities, and also for aquatic life and ecosystems. In this study, a stretch of river Gomti was studied at 5 sites in Lucknow for two consecutive seasons during 2019. The physicochemical-bacteriological parameters of water and sediment samples were analyzed, followed by multivariate statistics. Mean values of pH, turbidity, EC, TS, TDS, TSS, DO, BOD, COD, nitrate, phosphate, sulfate, total alkalinity, total hardness, chloride, and fluoride during the pre-monsoon period were 7.4 ± 0.2, 5.2 ± 3.3 (NTU), 444.4 ± 97.4 (µS/cm), 274.6 ± 61.6, 254.3 ± 50.2, 21.9 ± 11, 5.4 ± 1.6, 10.2 ± 5.9, 31.2 ± 13.3, 1.2 ± 0.5, 1.7 ± 1.1, 25.9 ± 3.7, 204 ± 41.8, 146.2 ± 11.5, 15.5 ± 8.7, and 0.5 ± 0.1 mg/l, respectively. The corresponding values during the post-monsoon season were 7.5 ± 0.2, 5.5 ± 3.2 (NTU), 436 ± 75.1 (µS/cm), 273.7 ± 124.2, 209.7 ± 82.5, 63.9 ± 43.4, 5.6 ± 1.6, 15.8 ± 8.9, 39.2 ± 23.5, 5.4 ± 4.6, 1.4 ± 0.9, 25.5 ± 5, 199.2 ± 36.6, 134 ± 8.6, 20.2 ± 8.9, and 1.7 ± 0.2 mg/l, respectively. Concentration of pollutants significantly increased by 5-15% from sampling station S1 (upstream) to S5 (downstream). Enumerations of fecal coliform and Escherichia coli bacteria were low at S1 but significantly higher at the S5 site. WQI ranged from 88 to 345 during pre-monsoon and 159 to 422 during post-monsoon period, indicating poor water quality which was unsuitable for drinking purposes. Strong positive correlations (≥ 0.9) were observed among pH, chloride, phosphate, sulfate, turbidity, conductivity, TS, TDS, BOD, and COD for water samples during both seasons. The data reveals that pollution load increases gradually from upstream to downstream due to the increasing discharge of raw sewage. Regulatory bodies should formulate strict regulations and ensure their implementation for the protection and management of river water quality.

Characterization of coal fly ash and use of plants growing in ash pond for phytoremediation of metals from contaminated agricultural land.

Mobilization of heavy metals around coal power plants due to improper disposal of fly ash (FA) and wastewater have led to release of pollutants into the environment. For protection of inimitable natural resources, application of economical and effective technologies is needed such as phytoremediation is cost-effective, ecofriendly and a better option for elimination of metal from contaminated sites. Twelve plant species were sampled from ash dyke of Singrauli and screened for accumulation of metals for this study. Mobilization ratio of metals from soil to plant was evaluated to determine translocation factor. CILLAS analyzer, Raman spectroscopy and SEM-EDX were used for characterization of particle size, functional groups and morphology of fly ash. Results showed mean metal concentrations in contaminated soil for Fe, Mn, Cr, Zn, Ni, Cu, Cd and Pb were 909.4, 60.6, 9.5, 134.8, 13.6, 26.7, 2.9 and 25.4 µg g-1 respectively. Enrichment factors for soil, root and shoot for a contaminated site were 1.9, 3.8 & 4.3 for Zn and 2.7, 3.5 & 3.8 for Cd. Six hyper-accumulators with absorption efficiency >1 viz. I. carnea, S. nigrum, S. munja, T. angustifolia, C. dactylon and P. hysterophorus were identified which may be cultivated successively to reclaim and restore damaged agricultural land.

Seasonal trends of PM2.5 and PM10 in ambient air and their correlation in ambient air of Lucknow city, India.

The PM(10) concentration (µg/m(3)) in Lucknow city at 4 locations in three different seasons ranged between 148.6-210.8 (avg. 187.2 ± 17.1) during summer, 111.8-187.6 (avg. 155.7 ± 22.7) during monsoon and 199.3-308.8 (avg. 269.3 ± 42.9) during winter while PM(2.5) ranged between 32.4-67.2 (avg. 45.6 ± 10.9), 25.6-68.9 (avg. 39.8 ± 4.6) and 99.3-299.3 (avg. 212.4 ± 55.0) during respective seasons. The mass fraction ratio of PM(2.5) ranged between 0.22-0.92 (avg. 0.42 ± 0.26) and was significantly high during winter season indicating their composition.

Uptake and accumulation of potentially toxic metals (Zn, Cu and Pb) in soils and plants of Durgapur industrial belt.

Uptake and accumulation of metals in crops may cause possible health risks through food chain. A field survey was conducted to investigate the accumulation of potentially toxic metals contamination in soil and plants irrigated with complexed industrial effluents. Concentration of Zn, Cu and Pb was 205-255,101-130,118-177 microg g(-1) in rhizosphere soils and 116-223, 57-102 and 63-95 microg g(-1) d. wt. in root and 95-186, 44-75 and 27-58 microg g(-1) d. wt. in shoot, respectively. The trend in Cu and Pb was in the order: soil > root > shoot > seed while in Zn it was soil > root > seed > shoot. Roots accumulated a larger fraction of soil Cu (70%) > Zn (67%) > Pb (54%). Bioaccumulation coefficient of soil to root ranged from 51-98 for Zn, 54-85 for Cu and 43-63 for Pb.Analysis of variance showed marginal change in bioaccumulation coefficient, noticed between plants (p > 0.05) while it varied significantly (p < 0.01) between tissues and metals. It increased from root to seed/fruit (root > shoot > seed/fruit) while decreased between metals from Zn to Pb (Zn > Cu > Pb). Out of the three, two Cu and Pb accumulated to phyotoxic levels while Zn was within threshold limit of phytotoxicity.