Assessment and Spatial Distribution Mapping of Criteria Pollutants

This study aims to assess the urban air quality, and map NO2, SO2, and PM10 profiles using two widely spatial interpolation methods, ordinary kriging (OK) and inverse distance weighting (IDW) by estimating their concentrations at distinct non-monitored locations. Assessment and mapping of air pollutants in this study help with policy formulation and decision-making. Kota, the industrial and educational hub of Rajasthan (India), has been selected to study air quality. Results showed that PM10 is continuously emerging as a foremost contributor to air quality index (AQI) each season. The concentrations of NO2 and SO2 in all seasons were well below the permissible level prescribed by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Interpolation techniques (OK and IDW) estimated the concentrations of NO2, SO2, and PM10 at three sites using air quality data from the year 2019. The interpolated air pollutant results for the specified region were compared with monitored air quality data in the same region. An excellent agreement has been observed by comparing monitored values, and the values predicted from IDW and OK.