Air quality in Satna

Does Satna have high levels of air pollution?

Satna is a city located in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, a state in central India. The capital of the said state is Bhopal city. Satna itself is in the northeastern region of Madhya Pradesh, and is home to some 280,000 inhabitants, as per a census conduction in 2011. Thus, it is likely that the population size will have grown considerably since then, along with infrastructure and subsequently the pollution levels as well, which will be examined in the article.

Observing the levels of air pollution present in late August of 2021, it can be seen that Satna had some fairly decent levels of air quality, not coming in with overtly polluted readings but at the same time also having room for improvement. In 2020, Satna had a full year of 'moderate' pollution readings, indicating that its ambient pollution issues were fairly prevalent, and as such it placed quite high on the global city rankings chart, coming in at 1088th place out of all cities ranked worldwide for 2020.

referring back to 2020, some US AQI readings that were present in August were figures such as 60, which would once again place Satna into the 'moderate' air pollution rating bracket. This is color-coded as yellow (which will be in use on the various air quality maps, graphs and forecasts on this page and throughout other state and city pages on the IQAir website, for ease of reference. A 'moderate' air quality rating requires a US AQI reading of anywhere between 51 to 100 to be classified as such and is indicative that there would be mild amounts of smoke, haze and fine particles in the atmosphere. This can cause some respiratory irritation to the general public, as well as also affecting those who belong to vulnerable demographics far more prevalently.

The PM2.5 count was also found to be at 16.2 μg/m³ when the above reading of 60 US AQI was taken. This is slightly above the World Health Organization's (WHO's) recommendation for a safe level of exposure; thus, precautions can be taken, on a daily basis, to reduce some of the more negative or unwanted side effects of pollution exposure. Persistent and chronic exposure can lead to a host of health conditions, some of which will be discussed in further detail in the following question.

PM2.5 refers to tiny particles that are 2.5 micrometers or less in diameter, going down to sizes potentially many microns smaller. PM2.5 can also consist of a variety of dangerous materials, ranging from metals, liquid vapors, mold spores, fungi and bacteria, along with nitrates, sulfates, soot and gravel or silica dust. Many of these, as well as others that are too numerous to mention, have well-known carcinogenic properties, and due to its microscopic size, can penetrate deep into the tissue of the lungs, as well as passing into the bloodstream via the alveoli or small air sacs. Once in the bloodstream, all manner of damage can be caused, making PM2.5 one of the most dangerous pollutants that can be found in the air.

Other US AQI readings present in August of 2021 include figures such as 57 and 68, once again both in the 'moderate' air quality rating bracket, as well as slightly improved readings of 29 and 40, both of which sat in the 'good' air quality bracket, indicating a period in which the air would be significantly freer of harmful contaminants and chemical pollutants.

What causes the polluted air quality in Satna?

Satna has many different sources of pollution present both within the city and outside of the city limits. Due to certain wind currents, smoke and dust can be blown in from other cities and rural areas, particularly when activities are taking place to produce these large amounts of soot and haze. Some of these activities include the burning of crops, or stubble burning as it is more commonly known in India, as well as being referred to as slash and burn farming.

Low-income districts along with as rural areas outside of the city can also produce large amounts of pollution via human activity, with households resorting to traditional methods of cooking or heating by burning material such as dried animal dung, firewood and charcoal. The combustion of these materials can release many different pollutants, with ones such as black carbon, volatile organic compounds and the various oxides of nitrogen (NOx) being let out into the air.

Other significant sources include vehicle emissions and fumes, along with road repairs and construction sites. Any working sites that cause a large enough disturbance to the soil or sand can throw up large clouds of fine particles into the air. These are prominent sources of harmful particulate matter, and with lack of stringent regulations around certain construction sites (such as uncovered piles of sand or improper hosing and cleaning methods used to wash away gravel and cement dust accumulations), such areas can cause the air to become heavily polluted by dust and other ultrafine or coarse particles.

What health issues stem from pollution exposure in Satna?

Health issues that may arise from pollution exposure in Satna include bouts of dry coughs, as well as chest pain and mild respiratory infections. If left untreated or exposure is not limited, these may develop into chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), an umbrella term that includes within it conditions such as emphysema, pneumonia, bronchitis and asthma.

Other more severe conditions include heart attacks, strokes, increased risk of various cancer (but most likely to affect the lungs or skin), arrhythmias, ischemic heart disease and even death.

When does Satna have the worst levels of air quality?

Observing the PM2.5 levels taken throughout 2020, it can be seen that Satna maintained a consistent 'moderate' air quality rating throughout the year, indicating that there was no point in time in which the pollution levels dropped by any significant amount.

However, out of all of these 'moderate' readings, the ones that stood out as being the worst were April and May, as well as August through to December, indicating that the time frame at the end of the year had the highest overall levels of PM2.5 on record. Out of all of these months, December was the most polluted, coming in with a reading of 20.2 μg/m³. This was followed closely by April with its reading of 20.1 μg/m³, showing that the pollution spikes in Satna were fairly sporadic in nature.

When does the air quality level in Satna improve?

As mentioned, despite maintaining its 'moderate' pollution ranking throughout the year, Satna had several months whereby the PM2.5 fell into the lower side of this rating. These months were January through to March, as well as June and July.

Their respective readings were 14.1 μg/m³, 12.6 μg/m³, 15 μg/m³, 13.8 μg/m³ and 15.6 μg/m³. This placed February into the cleanest and least polluted position for the year, with its reading of 12.6 μg/m³. This put it only a few units away from moving down into the more optimal 'good' air quality rating bracket.