Air pollution by inland waterways transportation in India

Abstract

Economy of any country depends on the existence of an efficient transport sector. There exists different modes of transportation such as railways, roadways, inland waterways, coastal shipping and airways. Sea freight is the best choice for international freight shipping because ships are used for transporting 80% of the world’s goods by volume. But at the same time, it becomes a great threat to human and ecosystem in the form of carbon emissions. Now-a-days, inland waterways are preferred over roadways and railways for domestic shipping in all the countries. India invests more in the development of inland waterways to have a cost effective cargo shipping. As the number of inland vessels increases, it may lead to the severe impact on environment due to more carbon emissions. Unless steps to reduce carbon emissions from vessels are adopted, it could increase by as much as 20% to 120% by 2050. This study reviews the inland waterways transportation of India and investigates the air pollution from inland vessels. Keywords: inland vessel; air pollution; carbon emission; transportation; environment