Home / Environment / Tiny Particles Fuel Wildfires, Fog, and Pollution Across South Asia
Tiny Particles Fuel Wildfires, Fog, and Pollution Across South Asia
8 Sep
Summary
- Aerosols intensify wildfires, winter fog, and urban pollution
- Agricultural burning in India and Pakistan a major seasonal contributor
- Ammonium from cattle and poor sanitation also worsen air quality
According to a recent report by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), tiny airborne particles known as aerosols are playing a significant role in exacerbating environmental challenges across South Asia. The WMO's 'Air Quality and Climate Bulletin', released on the 'Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies', highlights how these particles are contributing to the intensification of wildfires, winter fog, and urban pollution in the region.
The report identifies the burning of post-monsoon agricultural residue, particularly in Indian Punjab and the upper Indo-Gangetic Plain, as a dominant seasonal contributor to emissions. Satellite data confirms sharp increases in aerosol optical depth during these months, which correlates with spikes in fog intensity across the region, home to over 900 million people.
The WMO notes that other pollution sources in the densely populated Indo-Gangetic Plain include vehicle and construction emissions, as well as ammonium from large cattle populations and poor sanitation. This ammonium interacts with other chemicals to form stable fog condensation nuclei, resulting in persistent fog. Many brick kilns using inferior coal and obsolete technology further increase organic aerosol emissions.
The WMO's Deputy Secretary-General, Ko Barrett, emphasizes that "Climate impacts and air pollution respect no national borders" and that the vicious cycle of fossil fuel burning and other human activities contributing to climate change is also a source of pollutants like black carbon, nitrous oxide, and ground-level ozone, which in turn aggravate climate change.
