Spatial And Temporal Variation Of Ambient Pm 2.5 : A Case Study Of Banepa Valley, Nepal

Abstract

The study comprised of air quality monitoring during the day time at three municipalities of Banepa, Dhulikhel and Panauti in Kavre district of Nepal. In each of the municipalities three air monitoring stations were established representing industrial, commercial and residential areas. Particulate Matter (PM2.5) has been estimated from air sampling programme which spanned 7 months and a total of 126 days reflecting all the three seasons. The study found that during winter season the concentration of PM2.5 was more and among the areas commercial area noted highest level pollution. The seasonal trend in pollution levels show that winter > pre-monsoon > monsoon. The pollution concentration trend noted among the areas was commercial > industrial > residential on almost all the occasions except at pre-monsoon season between industrial and residential area in Banepa. This finding concludes that, commercial area of Banepa is more defined and is associated with higher particulate matter concentration compared to other areas. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/kuset.v8i1.6036 KUSET 2012; 8(1): 23-32