INTRODUCTIONS

The advent of the industrial revolution has irreversibly impacted on the way people across the globe live their daily lives. The process of industrialisation has left none untouched, in some way or the other, though in varying measure. While it has influenced both, family and society, its impact on humankind's struggle against its environmental after-effects has been most profound.

The larger environmental repercussions of our industrial age have to do with the pollution that accompanies it. Pollution accompanies every outshoot of industrialisation, be it industrial production, generation of electric power or vehicular transport. It has also become a marked feature of the lifestyles that have come to mark the end of the twentieth century.

The varied sources and forms of pollution are only matched by the various technologies developed to control pollution, be it pollution generated from industries, vehicles, use of fuel in generation of power steam, liquid & solid wastes generated from municipal / residential areas. Indeed, the scientific community all over the world has been giving an extra thrust to researching and designing pollution control mechanisms.

The difference in pollution control technologies is obvious. Pollution control technologies in the industrial sector include modification in processes, plant practices, in-plant control measures and end-on systems to remove pollutants (including recovery and reuse). On the other hand, the wastes generated from municipal/residential areas (mainly sewage, municipal solid waste and bio-medical waste) have to be properly treated and disposed off. Of late, municipal wastes are also providing for fuel gases or fertiliser pellets. Concurrently, the approach to controlling pollution from vehicles includes improved fuel quality, improved engine design and control system (i.e. catalytic converter).

This edition of Parivesh deals with the pollution control technologies in practice in various industrial sectors and the requirements to meet the objective for maintaining the quality of air and water. For us at the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), this is also important as it falls well within our mandate of activities defined under the Air (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, and the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.