PLoS ONE (Jan 2024)

Agricultural production and air pollution: An investigation on crop straw fires.

  • Kai Zhao,
  • Xiaohui Tian,
  • Wangyang Lai,
  • Shuai Xu

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0303830
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 19, no. 5
p. e0303830

Abstract

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In numerous developing nations, the pervasive practice of crop residue incineration is a principal contributor to atmospheric contamination in agricultural operations. This study examines the repercussions of such biomass combustion on air quality during the autumnal harvest season, utilizing data acquired from satellite-based remote sensing of fire events and air pollution measurements. Employing wind direction information alongside difference-in-difference and fixed-effects methodologies, this investigation rectifies estimation inaccuracies stemming from the non-random distribution of combustion occurrences. The empirical findings reveal that agricultural residue burning precipitates an elevation in average PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations by approximately 27 and 22 μg/m3 during the autumnal incineration period, respectively. Furthermore, air pollution attributed to residue burning in prominent grain-producing regions exceeds the national average by approximately 40%. By integrating economic paradigms into agri-environmental inquiries, this study offers novel insights and substantiation of the environmental expenditures engendered by crop residue burning, juxtaposed with extant meteorological and ecological research findings.