ESSENCE Colloquium- Air Pollution and Agriculture: A Menacing Nexus Threatening Human Health, Environment and Food Security.

The complex interconnection between air pollution and agriculture was elaborated by Dr.Saumya Singh (a research scientist at the University of California, Berkeley, USA), in the recent edition of ESSENCE Colloquium held on 12 June here in the campus. The topic titled Air Pollution and Agriculture: A Menacing Nexus Threatening Human Health, Environment and Food Security shed light on the agricultural practices, particularly on-farm production that degrades air quality. Recent studies reveal that agriculture plays a significant role in lowering global air quality, Ammonia (NH3) emissions from agricultural activities are now linked to 0.5-1 million premature deaths caused by exposure to PM2.5 and ozone (O3).

In her talk, Dr.Saumya focussed on measuring pollution exposure in both urban and rural areas, that aims to unravel the spatial distribution and interconnection between rural and urban air quality, particularly in relation to agriculture. By advancing rural-urban environmental sensing infrastructure, researchers aim to bridge knowledge gaps and enhance their understanding of the intricate relationship between air quality and agriculture.