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Particulate Collection Potential of Trees as a Means to Improve the Air Quality in Urban Areas in India

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Abstract

The particulate collection potential of tree species in a control and five experimental sites of an urban area in India were studied. Tree species selection was based on their commonness to all the sites, proximity to each location and their abundance in Indian subcontinent. A total of 45 leaf samples for all species in each site were analysed following standard protocols in three seasons (monsoon, post-monsoon and pre-monsoon) during 2015–2016. Out of the twenty one selected trees, eight were deciduous and thirteen evergreen. Particulate collection potential of deciduous trees was 22.6% more than that of evergreen trees. The leaf area showed direct relations, whereas petiole length and internodal distance showed antagonistic relations with particulate accumulation. The average particulate deposit on the leaves of trees of experimental sites (0.500 mg/cm2) was significantly more than that of the control site (0.358 mg/cm2). 80.95% of the species showed higher accumulation in the experimental sites against 19.04% of species in the control site. Distinct seasonality (p < 0.05) was noticed in respect of both parameters. Among the trees, Butea monosperma (1.156 mg/cm2), Tectona grandis (0.995 mg/cm2) and Diospyros melanoxylon (0.766 mg/cm2) had a high particulate deposit capacity with capturing efficiency of 48.44, 41.71 and 32.09%, respectively. On the basis of the study, it is advocated that tree species like B. monosperma, T. grandis and D. melanoxylon should be given top priority to function as barriers of particulate matter.

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Data Availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgments

The author Chandan Sahu highly acknowledges the Department of Science and Technology (DST), New Delhi, for providing financial assistance through INSPIRE fellowship (Sanction Order No.: DST/INSPIRE Fellowship/2014/186) to carry out the research work. The authors also thankfully acknowledge the help rendered by Dr. A.K. Mohapatra, Professor of English, Sambalpur University, in improving the language of the manuscript.

Funding

The current study is funded by Department of Science and Technology (DST), New Delhi, in form of INSPIRE fellowship (Sanction Order No.: DST/INSPIRE Fellowship/2014/186).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. P.G. Department of Environmental Sciences, Sambalpur University, Jyoti Vihar, Odisha, India

    Chandan Sahu, Sradhanjali Basti & Sanjat Kumar Sahu

  2. Gangadhar Meher University, Amruta Vihar, Sambalpur, Odisha, India

    Chandan Sahu

  3. State Pollution Control Board, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India

    Sradhanjali Basti

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  1. Chandan Sahu
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Chandan Sahu, Sradhanjali Basti and Sanjat Kumar Sahu. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Chandan Sahu and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Chandan Sahu.

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Sahu, C., Basti, S. & Sahu, S.K. Particulate Collection Potential of Trees as a Means to Improve the Air Quality in Urban Areas in India. Environ. Process. 8, 377–395 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40710-021-00494-3

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