Summary
Ground transport forms the central nervous system of any economy. It facilitates transport of goods that drives an economy, while also facilitating transport of people. The purpose of transport can be either commercial, business, or for pleasure.
Program
Development of ground transport infrastructure requires vast expanse of real estate as well as creation of temporary support infrastructure while building the ground transport systems. This also consumes enormous amount of raw materials like cement, coarse and fine aggregates, steel, while other inputs like diesel, heavy engineering equipment and extensive labour are the requirements. For the purpose of this paper ground transport infrastructure means both rail and road transport infrastructure though road is used all along it is implied to mean both rail and road infrastructure development.
Significance of the Problem
While laying out the ground transport infrastructure, there are often temporary blockages to the traffic and this might be a serious impediment to transportation of goods and people until it takes certain shape. The process of development of ground infrastructure requires coordinated effort between different agencies and utility service providers. It takes long periods of time for the development, and usually has long life span too. During the construction phase, there are different aspects of environment that get impacted including air, water, and sound pollution, damage to flora and fauna, which is incidental, as well as intentional damage to tree and other natural formations that are in the alignment path. There is lot of heat, oil, and dust pollution that happens during the construction phase, while there is a consumption of extremely large quantities of water for variety of uses during the process of construction, right from its usage for consolidation for the sub-stratum formation up to curing that may be required for various cement and concrete applications.
Impact on Flora and Fauna: Once the alignment is laid out and the preparation of the substratum starts, it begins to have immediate impact on the flora and fauna in the close proximity to the alignment of the pathway. The trees are cut down in the entire permanent-way path and also up to certain standard widths on either side of the alignment. Certain countries have a mandatory clearing of up to 500 m from the centreline of the alignment. This impact the trees and other vegetation in the surroundings and even destroys small pools and ponds that may exist along the alignment.
Air Pollution: During the process of laying out the alignment and the entire construction period there is an intense increase in air pollution. The pollution stems from the increased use of heavy construction vehicles and the emissions from them. Also there is a large movement of construction material. There is also movement of material to and from the construction site. This increases visible particulate matter (VPM) in the ambient air and also leads to decreased visibility. The dust is suspended in the air. Along with the dust, there are also increased vechicular emissions that increase carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide levels. This is clubbed with cutting down of green cover close by that further compounds the problem. This air pollution can have sever negative impact on the pulmonary health of the people within the close proximity of the project as well as the workmen who work on the project.
Water Pollution: Ground water tends to get tapped during the construction phase of many ground transport infrastructure development projects. Water is needed in large quantities for many project applications. The water applications include concrete mixing, curing, cleaning and others. The quantity needed especially in the concrete batching plants is large. Once the concrete is placed in-situ, water is also required for curing of concrete. There is run-off that happens during this process and the water tends to seep back into the ground water table. This water that is mixed with other substances pollutes the water table at times leading to long term impact.
Sound pollution: During the construction phase due to the movement of heavy construction equipment and their signalling when they move around – sound pollution increases. This continues right till the end of the project till all the heavy equipment moves out of the site. Movement of heavy material produces engine sounds. Pile drivers also create lot of noise during pile driving.
Damage to natural formations: When the alignment is laid out and the permanent way is formed, many natural formations that come in the path tend to get damaged. Some of the natural formations like rocks and dykes could be very old and even a few millions of years old. They could be damaged in an effort to generate aggregates for the project or simply remove them from the path of the alignment. This leads to irreversible damage to the overall environment during the project phase.
Alternate Actions and recommendations
Usage of fuel-efficient vehicles and machinery in the process of ground transport infrastructure development is one alternative that is recommended. Another alternative is appropriate planning of the project as well as adherence to the set standards. While the paper has listed damages that are caused during the project development and execution phase it is relevant to point out that such consequences are factored in during the evaluation of project and detailed cost-benefit analysis is carried out. The benefits that accrue due to the execution of the project must far outweigh the damages that occur during the execution of the project. Usually the ground transport infrastructure projects tend to add multi-fold to the national economy.
References
Morgan, J. (2014). Overview. Retrieved from WWF: http://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/infrastructure
Noss, R. (2002). The Ecological Effects of Roads. Retrieved from eco-action: http://www.eco-action.org/dt/roads.html
Science Daily. (2014). Road Dust - Something To Sneeze About. Retrieved from Science Daily: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/1999/11/991130062843.htm
United States Environment Protection Agency. (2014). Near Roadway Air Pollution and Health. Retrieved from EPA: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/nearroadway.htm
United States Environment Protection Agency. (2014). Roads, Highways and Bridges - NPS Categories. Retrieved from EPA: http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/roadshwys.cfm
