Health and environmental consequences of crop residue burning correlated with increasing crop yields midst India's Green Revolution

The Green Revolution (GR) enhances crop yields significantly that contributes greatly to the social and economic development of many less developed countries. However, the increasing crop yields might rise crop residue biomass burning, leading to adverse environmental and health consequences. We assess the impact of crop residue burning associated with the GR-induced growing crop yields on benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) pollution, a congener of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with strong carcinogenicity. We find a significant increasing trend of BaP emission and contamination from crop residue biomass burning from the mid-19605 to 2010s in India, coinciding with the growing crop yields occurring during the GR. Our results reveal that agricultural BaP emission driven lifetime lung cancer risk (ILCR) in India increased 2.6 times from the onset of GR in the mid-1960s to 2014 and the 57% population in India was exposed to the BaP level higher than the India national standard (1 ng m(-3)). We show that the reduction of open crop residue burning during the rice and wheat residue burning period would be a very effective measure to reduce BaP environmental contamination and health risk.

Automated summary

The Green Revolution has contributed significantly to the social and economic development of less developed countries by increasing crop yields. However, it has also led to the burning of crop residues, resulting in adverse environmental and health consequences. This study evaluates the impact of crop residue burning on the pollution of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), a highly carcinogenic compound, and finds a significant increase in BaP emission and contamination in India during the period of the Green Revolution. The study suggests that reducing open crop residue burning during specific periods can effectively reduce BaP contamination and associated health risks.