Recently, the Delhi government had announced its interest in buying electric-powered city buses. Do you think such move would improve the city’s air quality? Analyse in comparison with CNG-powered buses. (200 words)
Refer – Live mint
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IAS Parliament 6 years
KEY POINTS
Issue
· Recently, the Delhi government announced its interest in buying 200 new electric-powered city buses.
· Each costing Rs2.5 crore compared to Rs85 lakh for a bus running on compressed natural gas (CNG).
Does it improve Delhi’s air quality?
· Critical pollutants which affecting Delhi’s air quality are particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2), carbon monoxide (CO), and ozone (O3).
· Out of these, one pollutant that is super critical for human health is PM (also referred as dust, aerosols, and soot). The health effects differ based on particle size and penetration depth.
· The higher density of vehicles on the roads in Delhi let particulate matter (PM) levels rise to new heights.
· But 70-95% of PM emissions caused by road transportation are not related to tailpipe emissions but to road dust re-suspension and abrasion of brakes and tyres.
Only a shift of origin
· Delhi’s electric power is mainly produced by coal-powered plants.
· Coal and fly ash contribute around 26% of the PM2.5 in the city. In winter, vehicular emissions and power plants contribute 30% of PM2.5.
· On the other hand, natural gas is a cleaner-burning fuel, which usually results in substantial reduction of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and oxides of nitrogen (NOx).
· Generation of energy and emissions only change the place of origin. For instance, from roads to Power plants.
· The switch to electric would neither change the air quality in the city nor would it be an environmentally friendly initiative.
Way Ahead
· Instead, the focus should be on measures which are more sustainable, paired with effective investments to improve air quality.
· EVs have considerably fewer parts and will be cheaper to produce in the future. But, the technology is still too expensive.
· The same amount of money spent for those 200 e-buses could be used to get at least 400 modern, cleaner and more efficient CNG buses or even a better investment in far more effective initiatives.
· Renewing the current fleet of CNG buses and investing in truly effective projects is the better solution at this point of time.
