Pollution studies of land, water and air
Air Pollution
Marine Pollution
River Pollution
Study of air pollution stress in plants by laser induced fluorescence
Air pollution alters the photosynthetic quantum conversion and hence the plant vitality. The effect of air pollution on plant health is a growing concern and the and long-term effects of pollutant gases like SO2, NO2 on crop production and yield is an area of current O3 interest.
An open top chamber of 3 m height
and 2.5 m diameter was designed and built for carrying out air pollution
stress studies in plants. This chamber is connected to an air filtering
unit for growing plants under clean as well as pollutant environments.
A transparent PVC film covers the chamber on all sides to let in diffused
sunlight and provision was made for watering of plants. Stress specific
signatures will be obtained by laser-induced fluorescence from plants
grown in the chamber subjected to automobile exhaust emission.
A pilot study on the concentration of air pollutants in Thiruvananthapuram city and its peripheral areas.
The primary objective was to obtain a quantitative base line data of Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM), oxides of nitrogen and sulphur dioxide and to identify thepossible sources of these pollutants. The study also aims to determine the effect of pollutant concentration with distance, season and weather conditions. Estimated the concentration of SPM, and SO2 in eight locations of Thiruvananthapuram City and its peripheral areas during monsoon as well as non-monsoon seasons During summer season, except in the remote rural locations, all other stations registered higher SPM values than the standard values. Monsoon values were lower by 35 to 68% than the corresponding non-monsoon values In non-monsoon period, highly polluted locations showed values greater than the standard value. During the SO2 monsoon season, NO2 and SO2 concentrations of all the stations were within the threshold values.
Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System (COMAPS) along Southwest coast of India and the Lakshadweep Islands
The Southwest coast of India bordering the state of Kerala receives large amount of domestic and industrial wastes discharged in to the coastal environment.
The principal objective of the ongoing study, COMAPS, is to analyse and build up consistent time series database on the sources, levels, pathways and effect of various pollutants of nearshore waters of Kerala and Lakshadweep so as to contribute towards the periodic assessment of the state of marine pollution, analytical data, quality assurance and inter-laboratory comparison exercises.
The fieldwork was conducted at selected transects viz. Kochi, Alappuzha, Kayamkulam (Valiazhikkal), Kollam (Neendakara), Paravur, Thiruvananthapuram (Veli) and Vizhinjam. In each transect, five sampling stations viz. nearshore, 2.5km, 5.0km, 12.5km and 25 km were fixed for sample collection and analysis. The results and findings of the field programme conducted during the 8th(Sept- Oct1999) and 9th (March-April 2000) CRV Sagar Paschimi cruise from Kochi to Vizhinjam transects were synthesized and the salient findings are:
During Sept-Oct 1999, high acidity, low DO and high suspended particulate matter was observed at Veli near shore. PHC content was the highest at Neendakara region followed by Kochi. In most of the stations, near nearshore samples showed low DO compared to the off shore samples. High inorganic phosphate and total Phosphorus were recorded at Kochi, Neendakara and Alappuzha, highest silicate at Veli followed by Kochi. Among sediment samples, the highest sand content was reported at Vizhinjam and silt content at Kochi. During March-April 2000, the Veli nearshore recorded high pH, low DO and high suspended particulate matter. DO concentration found increasing towards offshore. Highest concentration of nitrate and phosphate were reported at the nearshore samples. The dissolved concentration of Pb, Cd and Hg were found to be almost similar in all the water samples. The percentage of sand in sediment increased from Kochi to Vizhinjam and consequently the trace metal concentration decreases.
During Sept-Oct ’99 the maximum productivity was reported at Kayamkulam while the minimum was reported at Kochi and Veli. The chlorophyll a concentration was maximum at Paravur 5.0 km offshore and minimum at Veli nearshore. The highest and lowest phytoplankton density were noticed at Veli 5.0 km offshore and nearshore stations respectively. The highest zooplankton density and biomass were recorded at Kayamkulam 12.5 km offshore and the lowest at Veli nearshore. Comparatively, higher primary production was recorded during March-April, 2000
At Veli, the productivity was found increasing and stabilizing towards offshore. A declining trend in chlorophyll a was generally noticed from nearshore for all the stations. The high phytoplankton counts were reported from Paravur and Alleppey from 2.5 km onwards. Gastropods, Bivalves and Polychaets dominated the zoobenthos population.
During Sept-Oct 1999 the highest TVC was recorded at Kochi estuary in water samples and at Neendakara estuary in sediment samples. Veli nearshore did not enumerate them. Coliforms, faecal E.coli and faecal streptococci showed their highest presence at Neendakara estuary in both the samples. Salmonella sp. and Proteus, Klebsiella sp. was the maximum at Neendakara estuary. The count of Vibrio cholera like species was the maximum at Kayamkulam nearshore in water samples and in sediment samples at Alappuzha nearshore. During March-April, 2000 maximum TVC in water samples was recorded at Neendakara estuary and in sediment samples at Cochin estuary. Veli nearshore did not show the presence of any organisms in both samples. E.coli showed their maximum presence in both samples at Cochin estuary, whereas, coliforms were recorded maximum from water samples at Neendakara estuary and sediment samples at Cochin estuary. Faecal E.coli, Shigella sp., Proteus, Klebsiella sp. and faecal streptococci showed their maximum counts in both samples at Neendakara estuary. Salmonella sp. and Pseudomonas aeruginosa showed their maximum count in water samples at Neendakara estuary, while sediment samples did not record them. The counts of Vibrios like organisms were the maximum in Alappuzha, Neendakaraand Kochi area. The effluents of TTP at Veli are found to have affected the overall organic life in the nearshore area.
Hot spot monitoring at Veli adjoining the Travancore Titanium Products (TTP)
The main objective of the study was to assess the effect of TTP effluents mainly consisting of sulphuric acid, iron to the coastal environment of Veli and traces of TiO2 in terms of physico-chemical, biological and microbiological marine pollution parameters.
Samples were collected during the lockout period of TTP in March-April 2000 and compared with the samples collected during January 1999. The stations include the effluent discharge point (EDP) of TTP. The pH and dissolved oxygen and other chemical parameters off Veli TTP coast attained normal levels during March 2000 showing the self-purification of water bodies. During January 1999, all the biological parameters were the lowest at EDP and found increasing towards both sides. In contrast during the lockout period of the factory all the parameters were distributed uniformly. During January 1999, though the phytoplankton count reached 5000/l, the chlorophyll a has not shown much increase. This indicates that phytoplankton at the time of effluent discharge were not healthy. The effluent discharge point that showed the minimum total viable count(95 CFU/ml) during January ‘99 has risen to 4300 CFU/ ml in the present study. The same trend was observed in the case of almost all the organisms.
The distribution of mercury in the river systems around Nilambur, Malappuram District, Kerala.
The prime objective of the study was to bring out the status of distribution of Mercury in the river systems around Nilambur due to human activities for winning gold from the primary and secondary deposits.
Detailed field work and data collection were carried out to document Mercury of Karimpuzha, Marudapuzha,Punna puzha and certain small streams around Nilambur, Gold distribution in the rivers around gold washing areas of Karimpuzha, Marudapuzha, Punnapuzha and certain small streams around Nilambur. About 400Sq. km was demarcated for the present study. In water samples, dissolved and particulate Mercury were determined. A random variation in Mercury content was observed, but there was no systematic decrease or increase in the level of mercury during various seasons.
The study systematically documented the inadvertent anthropogenic introduction of metallic mercury into the rivers by illicit “gold panners” and of consequent pollution of the environment. Different types of sediment samples were collected from various rivers around the gold washing areas of Nilambur. In certain areas, high Mercury content was observed in bottom sediments, which indicates localization of Mercury in sediments. This can have serious and long-term environmental impact.