Tackling air pollution in cities: What measures should be taken?
Air pollution is a growing environmental hazard in today’s world. It takes place when the level of toxic wastes in air increases, leading to several health complications such as tuberculosis, asthma, bronchitis, etc. This can also prove to be extremely fatal, and in some cases, lead to heritable diseases, significantly impacting future generations. Thus, it becomes the need of the hour to address this growing concern by controlling its causes. Air pollution can be caused due to a variety of reasons- natural as well as man-made. However, the leading cause of air pollution is the combustion of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are rich reserves of energy which have been accumulated over long periods of time. A widely used example is petroleum, which is the most refined form of fossil fuel and is used in majority of vehicles today. Diesel is yet another widely used fossil fuel for powering vehicles. Upon combustion, these fuels combine with oxygen to release carbon monoxide, which is a major contributor to air pollution.
Although it is increasingly necessary to take immediate measures to tackle the problem of air pollution, saying that the best way to do this is by increasing the cost of vehicle fuel has its downsides. This argument would still be considerable if other sources of energy were as readily available as fossil fuels, however, it is not the case. Majority of the people find it difficult to meet their basic needs, and switching to vehicles adopting cleaner sources of energy such as Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), solar-powered vehicles, etc. on a short notice would be close to impossible. If prices go up, such people would find it difficult to cope up with their living expenses, pushing the poverty line further below.
Increasing the cost of vehicle fuels alone is no solution, but it can be clubbed with other measures to tackle this problem. For instance, the government can work on making public transport sector more hospitable in terms of ambience and costs, so that common people prefer public modes of transport over personal modes, significantly reducing the usage of vehicles and thus air pollution. For shorter commutes, encouraging the use of bicycles by reserving area for bikers on roads can lead to lower pollutant emissions. Imposing penalties on vehicles without Platinum or Palladium adsorbent filters can also be a great measure to control air pollution. The government can also increase its funds to research on renewable and sustainable energy sources so that cheaper and more widely available clean sources can be designed. Most importantly, there needs to be awareness about the problem of air pollution in citizens, encouraging them to take personal measures to tackle this problem.
In conclusion, increasing the cost of vehicle fuel along with several different measures to provide sustainable and affordable alternatives can lead to the adoption of cleaner and renewable sources of energy, thereby lowering air pollution and contributing to a healthier and happier environment.