Context
International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) launches air quality dashboard to track and forecast pollution across Indo-Gangetic plain.
More on News:
- Millions of people in the Indo-Gangetic plain and the Himalayan foothills are continuously exposed to harmful air.
- Between November 1-21, 2024, the dashboard recorded daily PM2.5 concentrations peaking at 300 µg/m³ in certain areas — 20 times higher than the WHO guideline of 15 µg/m³.
- To tackle the public health crisis, ICIMOD has launched an Air Quality Dashboard, providing real-time and forecasted air pollution data.
Main features of the Air Quality Dashboard:
- The dashboard integrates ground sensor data with satellite imagery to offer a detailed overview of air pollution at local, sub-regional, and regional levels.
- One of its features is a dynamic timelapse driven by the Weather Research and Forecasting model with Chemistry (WRF-Chem).
- The WRF-Chem model on the dashboard enables users to examine how weather patterns interact with air pollution sources, offering insights into pollution outbreaks and trends.
- This model reveals the alarming spread of PM2.5 plumes across the region, including hotspots like Lahore, New Delhi and Kolkata.
- It integrates emissions data at both local and regional levels, offering a clearer picture of pollution dynamics across borders.
- Users can also access two-day forecasts, enabling communities, policymakers and researchers to anticipate air quality conditions.
