Spatio-temporal analysis of air quality in high traffic density zones of Haridwar City, India.

Authors

Jogendra Singh, Pankaj Kumar, Amol Kale, Anuj Kumar Yadav, Pradip Kumar Maurya, Dinesh Kumar, Faheem Ahamad

Published in

Environmental monitoring and assessment. Volume 197. Issue 8. Pages 889. Jul 10, 2025. Epub Jul 10, 2025.

Abstract

Urban air pollution poses a significant threat to human health and environmental quality, especially in rapidly urbanizing areas. This study aimed to analyze the spatio-temporal variations of air quality in Haridwar City, India, identifying critical pollution hotspots. A systematic air quality monitoring approach was adopted to assess the air quality at the high traffic density zones of Haridwar City. Key pollutants such as particulate matter (PM_2.5 and PM₁₀) and gaseous matter (NO₂ and SO₂) were monitored for 1 year starting from April 2023 to March 2024. The data was processed to calculate the air quality index (AQI) using normalization methodology and Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) recommended methodology to rank the selected sites based on their pollution level. The data was also analyzed using principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis (CA) techniques to identify pollution trends and hotspots. PM₁₀ concentrations {(UKH1-103.07 to 125.37 µg/m³), (UKH2-100.38 to 114.40 µg/m³), (UKH3-105.88 to 119.85 µg/m³), (UKH5-127.08 to 130.96 µg/m³), (UKH6-126.79 to 139.11 µg/m³)} exceeded permissible limits of National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) of 24 h (100 µg/m³) at all the sites except at UKH4 (92.06 to 97.51 µg/m³) and 7 (43.08 to 52.09 µg/m³) (control) in all seasons. PM_2.5 concentrations were found below the permissible limits of NAAQS of 24 h (60 µg/m³) at all the sites except at UKH5 (75.16 to 77.99 µg/m³) in all seasons. Gaseous emissions (NO₂ and SO₂) were found below the permissible limits of NAAQS (80 μg/m³). Seasonal variations indicated elevated particulate matter levels in winter due to atmospheric stagnation. Spatial analysis identified five critical hotspots (UKH1, 2, 3, 5, and 6) with consistently poor air quality indices (AQI > 50). The study indicates the urgent need for targeted air pollution mitigation strategies like water sprinkling and the use of mist cannon to suppress the dust emissions, especially in high-risk zones.

PMID:
40637895
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 10 Jul 2025.

Read full publication at:
Please sign in to see all details.

Stats

1-terrible, 9-excellent. How would you rate this publication? Sign in in to submit your rating.

Post a comment

You need to be signed in to post comments. You can sign in here.

Comments

There are no comments yet.