The Hindu Business Line : Toyota, TERI to set up model to study urban pollution

TOYOTA Motor Corporation, on Wednesday, announced its commitment to India as a partner not only in its core business of automobile manufacturing but also in contributing its share in the improvement of environment.

Toyota will contribute Rs 70 lakh towards undertaking a study to be conducted jointly by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and Toyota Central R&D Lab (TCRDL) for preparing an air quality model for studying pollution levels in India. The model would be applied to Bangalore, which has been chosen for the pilot study.

The report would be ready in three years, with two interim reports to be released at the end of the first and second year.

The study aims to apply a model that could help in devising strategies for improving air quality in urban areas.

The study would focus on particulate matter, and would work on two models that would cover Community Multi-scale Air Quality model and Urban to Regional Model.

Mr Hiroyuki Watanabe, Senior Technical Executive, Toyota, said that the project was one of the first initiatives to use comprehensive multi-grid, three-dimensional Urban Air Quality Model that had been developed by Toyota for the US and Japan. TERI and TCRDL would coordinate to evolve a model that would base Indian conditions.

He said, "We are happy to contribute environmental improvements in India through this project."

Mr R.K. Pachauri, Director-General, TERI, said that the study was not confined to the auto industry alone and added that it would be completed in three years.

A workshop would be held after the final report was prepared, where all stakeholders would share their views on the issues.

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