Effect of industrial emission on atmospheric wet deposition

In order to quantity the role of industries on atmospheric depositions, wet depositions were collected at different sites in Singrauli area of Sonbhadra district, U.P., India. Rainwater samples were collected on event basis and were analyzed for pH and concentration of H+ ion, cations and anions. The monthly variations in rainwater pH clearly indicate that early rainfall is more alkaline and as rainy season proceeds rainwater showed lower pH. The pH of rain from June to September varied from 6.6 to 4.8 at most polluted locality. Among different cations, Ca2+ showed maximum concentration followed by NH4+,Na+, Mg2+ and then K+, whereas among anions sulphate concentration was maximum followed by nitrate and then chloride. A significant positive correlation observed between sulphate and accumulated rainfall suggests that the source of sulphate is mainly the industrial activities. While the negative correlations of other cations with accumulated rain suggest their additional sources in the area. The study clearly indicates that the abundance of alkaline substances reduces the acidity of wet depositions.