Supreme Court asks NEERI to examine impact of glass industrial units on Taj Mahal

The Supreme Court has directed the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) to study and assess the impact of emissions from glass manufacturing units. NEERI must submit an affidavit specifying the time required for this assessment. Government authorities are instructed to provide full cooperation to NEERI during the exercise. (Source: The Hindu)

Emissions from Glass Industry – Environmental Concerns: (As per European Environment Agency)

• Primary Pollutants:
  • Sulphur oxides (SOx)
  • Nitrogen oxides (NOx)
  • Carbon dioxide (CO2)
• Other Pollutants (Less common or conditional):
  • Carbon monoxide (CO)
  • Nitrous oxide (N2O)
• Additional Concerns:
  • Emissions of heavy metals during the melting process
  • Particulate matter from handling raw materials, sometimes containing heavy metals
• Waste Gases Composition:
  • Mainly combustion gases (from fuel)
  • Gases from melting batch materials or vapors due to chemical reactions in furnaces
  • In flame-heated furnaces, batch gases form 3–5% of total gas volume