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If you are planning to come to the city of thousand dreams Mumbai, come prepared to breathe in cancer-causing air as the amount of cancer-causing particulate matter in the air in this sprawling city has increased alarmingly over the years.
According to the latest Environment Status Report (ESR) for 2009-2010, released by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) the body that rules the city, the air that the people are breathing in the city may make them more susceptible to cancer. The report shows that the presence of benzo(a)pyrene, a highly carcinogenic chemical released in the air, in the city has risen eight times from its minimum level of 0.13 µg/1000m3 in 2008-2009 to 1.09.
The report says that the maximum level has increased five times, from 0.54 µg/1000m3 in 2008-2009 to 2.56. µg/1000m3 is a unit that measures the concentration of particulate matter in a defined quantity of air. The annual average of B(a)P levels has exceeded the Central Pollution Control board standards of 1 µg/1000m3.
Medical experts are of the view that these carcinogens can cause cancer of the breathing tract and the voice box as they are absorbed by the body while breathing. Benzo(a)pyrene is part of a class of chemicals called polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and is emitted from tar, automobile exhaust fumes and smoke from combustion of organic materials such as tobacco, wood, plants and coal, among other materials.
A large number of studies have documented links between benzo(a)pyrene and cancers, the BMC report said. It also shows that the annual range of other PAHs — phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene, chrysene and benz(a)anthracene — have also seen a significant jump compared to last year.
PAHs, produced as byproducts of fuel burning, are potent atmospheric pollutants and identified as both carcinogenic and mutagenic.
Long-term human exposure to these PAHs might lead to genetic damage, experts say.
The BMC report attributes the rise in these carcinogenic chemicals to increased construction activity and rapid industrialisation, among other factors. The report is based on data of ambient air quality recorded at six air-monitoring stations at different areas in the city like Worli, Andheri, Khar, Bhandup, Borivli and Maravli (Chembur).
The report also highlights the rise in suspended particulate matter (SPM) levels in the city, stating that the SPM levels have exceeded permissible limits at all sites except Borivli. SPM is high in areas that have high construction activities and emissions from bakeries, factories, hotels and stone-cutting units.
