Air pollution is estimated to be responsible for at least 48,000 premature deaths in Delhi alone in 2020 ( Greenpeace, n.d.). The consequences of this air pollution include skin and eye irritation, respiratory problems (dry cough, wheezing, breathlessness, chest discomfort, asthma), and hypertension ( Rizwan, Nongkynrih, & Gupta 2013). At their peak, these fires are responsible for ~58% of Delhi air pollution ( Beig et al. These pollutants affect the immediate area and also drift southeast to Delhi, smothering the city of ~22 million in thick haze. Stubble burning releases carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, and methane as well as particulate matters (PM 10and PM 2.5) ( Abdurrahman, Chaki, & Saini 2020). These farmers collectively burn 90-140 billion kilograms of rice residue each year ( Bisen & Rahangdale 2017). 2020), which typically must be sown about two weeks after the rice harvest. Around October about 2.5 million farmers in northwest India burn stubble to prepare their fields for the subsequent wheat crop ( Keil et al. Because it is rapid and inexpensive, on-field burning is by far the most popular method. There are currently four primary methods to manage the residue: mulching by cutting and on-field distribution, baling and removal from the field, incorporation by tilling into the field, and on-field burning ( Shyamsundar et al. For every ton of rice harvested, about 1.4 tons of stubble is left behind ( Satpathy & Pradhan 2020). Many farmers in northwest India use an intensive rice-wheat rotation system that generates large amounts of agricultural residue (“stubble”) ( Abdurrahman, Chaki, & Saini 2020). Stubble burning in north India is a major contributor to seasonal decreases in ambient air quality. By way of comparison, it’s estimated that in 2019 malaria was responsible for ~46.4 million DALYS and ~643,000 premature deaths ( Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, 2020). It’s estimated that in 2015 outdoor PM 2.5 air pollution was responsible for ~29.6 million DALYs and ~1.09 million premature deaths ( GBD MAPS Working Group, 2018: 1-3). This exposure is linked “to many adverse health effects, including diminished lung function, acute and chronic respiratory symptoms (such as asthma and cough and wheeze), and increased risk of mortality from non-communicable diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary (lung) disease, heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer, and from lower-respiratory infections in children and adults” ( GBD MAPS Working Group, 2018: 3). Average exposure has increased from 60 µg per cubic meter for PM 2.5 in 1990 to 74 µg per cubic meter in 2015. Approximately 99.9% of the Indian population reside in areas that regularly exceed the WHO air quality guideline of 10 micrograms (µg) of PM 2.5 per cubic meter, and almost 90% of the population live in areas that regularly exceed 35 µg per cubic meter for PM 2.5. India has among the worst outdoor air pollution anywhere in the world. I’m certainly not an expert in this subject, so the claims below should be independently verified before any significant actions are taken. I’m sharing here on the off chance that they might be useful to someone. These notes were compiled for a project that was later abandoned for reasons unrelated to the project’s promise.
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