Surat Clean Air Action Plan

The Surat Clean Air Action Plan (SCAP) was prepared by World Resources Institute India (WRI-India) in collaboration with Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) and the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB), and supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies and Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation (SSEF).The source apportionment study, prepared by TERI, identified air pollution sources in Surat, resulting in the development of a clean air action plan by WRI India that outlines mitigation actions aimed at reducing air pollution.

The Surat Clean Air Action Plan (SCAP) recommends cost-effective interventions to reduce emissions from identified air pollution sources. Some of the recommendations include promoting clean fuel in industries, monitoring and managing construction dust, promoting non-motorized transport, open municipal solid waste burning, development and conservation of green spaces along the corridors, and traffic junctions in the city to manage the road dust.

The preparation of the Surat City Clean Air Action Plan (SCAP) saw a two year long process including primary surveys, primary and secondary data collections, stakeholder identification and consultations. Stakeholders actively participated in the process, key stakeholders include; Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India (CREDAI), Surat, were consulted for the mitigation of Construction dust sector. South Gujarat Textile Processors Association (SGTPA) were consulted for the Industrial sector etc. In all, seven major stakeholder consultations were organized within Surat city which were attended by more than 1000 individual and firms.

Surat City has been ranked as the second cleanest city in India two years in row since 2021 and is aiming to top Swachh Survekshan 2022. However, the city has been identified as one of the 132 non-attainment cities in India and thus requires robust planning and collaborative actions in air quality management. The SCAP project not only highlights the need for technical interventions but also suggests institutional strengthening of the SMC and GPCB in their mitigation actions road map.