Geoinformatics based Estimation of Suspended Particulate Matter, Respirable Particulate Matter and Nitrogen Dioxide Concentration in Ambient Air of Sonepur Bazari OCP, India Sarkar Amit Ph. D. Research Scholar, Department of Geography, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, India Junior Research Fellow, University of Calcutta, Vivekananda College for Women Barisha, Kolkata, India. iamdramit@gmail.com Online published on 12 May, 2017. Abstract Coal extraction brings huge profits to the society, but it gradually deteriorates the environment that is a crucial matter of concern. The study area Sonepur Bazari is the biggest OC Project of Raniganj coalfield commenced in 1990. On average Sonepur Bazari OC project annually produces 3.5 million tons coal and 15 million tons over burden at a stripping ratio of 1: 4.72. To produce this huge amount of coal and OB it degrades the environment vastly. In order to estimate the environmental degradation in this area, spatial and temporal variations of suspended particulate matter (SPM), respirable particulate matter (RPM) and nitrogen oxide (NOx) of air were measured on a seasonal basis from March 2013 to February 2015. SPM was measured by using volumetric filtration and gravimetric weighing method. Alongside RPM was measured by using Testo 460 pocket sized RPM meter. Nitrogen oxide was measured by using simple/total NOx industrial emission analyzer (model no E4500 portable). Simultaneously in Arc GIS, mathematical algorithms like Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) and Kriging have also been applied to detect the overall air pollution. The main objective of this study is to estimate the environmental impact due to opencast mining and to provide suitable remedies. The result clearly indicates that maximum suspended particulate matter (SPM) and respirable particulate matter (RPM) was found at Kenda Area Office (monitoring station 3) that is 304 μg/m3 and 156 μg/m3 respectively. On the contrary, maximum nitrogen oxide was found at Kenda area office that is 29 ppm. Based on the obtained data, several maps have been generated in Arc GIS in an aims to demarcate severely polluted area. Top Keywords Sonepur Bazari OCP, spatial and temporal air quality, Geoinformatics, remedies. Top |