BMC approves air quality monitors for construction sites

With this step, the BMC will be able to identify errant construction sites instead of taking action on an entire civic ward with poor air quality, as it did last winter

MUMBAI: The civic administration has approved 15 models of low-cost air quality sensors to be installed at every construction site in Mumbai, as mandated by the Bombay High Court. Readings from these monitors will be displayed on-site as well as online, alerting the civic body as well as residents to a potential breach of air quality limits.

Mumbai, India - Sept. 5, 2023: Arial view of Infrastructural development at Sath Raasta, Mahalaxmi, in Mumbai, India, on Tuesday, September 5, 2023. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times)

“In February, the BMC had invited firms to submit their sensor-based air quality monitors for scrutiny,” said an official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s environment department. “Of a total of 22, we have selected 15 that meet our specifications.” While these monitors have been mandated since 2023, only 10% of construction sites have installed them, most of them unreliable, he said.

The BMC will now communicate the makes and models of the sensors – each of which costs ₹1-2 lakh – through the AutoDCR portal, so that builders can set up sensors at their construction sites. They will also have to install a display board with air quality readings.

The Bombay High Court had ruled on a suo moto petition on air pollution in late April, that sensors should be set up within six weeks, till the second week of June. If not, the court said, construction sites would be told to shut. The BMC officer, however, said the BMC would urge the court to extend the deadline by a month.

Keval Valambhia, COO of CREDAI-MCHI, a body of real-estate developers, said, “While mandating air quality sensors is a good step, the government must incentivise and encourage the use of green building technologies, which are more expensive than the usual. It is also unfair to blame the issue of air pollution on the construction industry. Hence we have tied up with MahaPreit, a Government of Maharashtra company, to analyse how much it contributes.”

Last week, CREDAI-MCHI held a workshop with WRI India, the BMC and MPCB, on air pollution mitigation, with site engineers and other officials on site, highlighting solutions like fogging, wheel washing, enclosed cutting and drilling areas, etc.

It will take around month for developers to install the sensors on site and three months for the BMC to set up a portal for the readings to be displayed on an online dashboard.

With this step, the BMC will be able to identify errant construction sites instead of taking action on an entire civic ward with poor air quality, as it did last winter.