Objective: Air pollution is one of the major global tribulations in many developing cities around the world. Addressing this sort of pollution is more intricate than other ecological challenges. As pollution is an upcoming issue, we aimed at assessing the air pollution tolerant plants from roadside exposed to vehicular air pollution from two different locations in Thane city. Methods:In the present study, commonly available ten roadside tree species selected from polluted and control area, and their air pollution tolerance index (APTI) determined in Thane city. The biochemical parameters viz. pH, ascorbic acid, total chlorophyll, relative water content (RWC) were considered to calculate APTI by using standard method. Results:The study shows that the control site has more APTI than the polluted site. The APTI observed minimum in Conclusion:Tolerant trees species can serve as a sink, and sensitive tree species can act as an indicator for air pollution mitigation. Thus, this study provides useful insights for selecting tolerant species for future planning and Greenbelt development in urban areas.

The present investigation was conducted to estimate the total carbon sequestered by urban trees in Thane city (India). The total tree biomass, total stored carbon, and CO2 removed by urban trees was determined by with allometric model/volume equations and compared. Using random sampling plot method 50 plots with 0.04 ha each, generated to facilitate measurements of trees. It was observed that, carbon sequestration (kgC/tree) was highest in Azadirachta indica, 3,289.8 kgC/tree, followed by Ficus benghalensis (2,375.5 kgC/tree), Tamarindius indica (1,666.9 kgC/tree), Casurina equisetifolia (1,530.5 kgC/tree) and Pongamia pinnata (865.9 kgC/tree). The investigation data will be helpful to evaluate the role of urban trees in reducing atmospheric the carbon dioxide. The study will also be useful in assessment of carbon storage potential of the several regions, which are under the threat of air pollution issues worldwide in near future.

In recent times, highly developed metropolitan cities have progressively used biodiverse roadside plants as an eco-sustainable tool for the mitigation of air pollution. The present study has been designed to scrutinize the impact of particulate matter (PM) deposition and heavy metal accumulation in roadside plants. Some of the common roadside plants found along the national highway at Thane (Mumbai) region that were selected for this study are Alstonia schlolaris, Bauhinia variegata, Ficus benghalensis, Ficus religiosa, Cassia fistula, and Mangifera indica. The inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) analysis was carried out for five heavy metals, namely Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn. The particulate matter deposition was observed to be the highest in Ficus benghalensis (1.14 mg kg -1 ), while it was found to be the lowest in Bauhinia variegata (0.71 mg kg -1 ). The present study revealed that the accumulation of heavy metals in plants inversely varies with the deposition of dust on the surface of leaves. The tolerant species of plants can serve as natural biofilters that can alleviate environmental pollution to certain extent.

In the quest of biomonitoring urban environmental health, the present study focuses on the assessment of tree foliage exposed to vehicular-pollution in Thane city, India. Tree species being continuously exposed to air pollution tends to absorb the pollutants by their foliage surface. Biochemical, morphological and anatomical changes in four selected tree species namely Alstonia scholaris, Cassia siamea, Ficus religiosa and Mangifera indica growing at Teen Haat Naka (polluted site) and Yeoor hills (forest area as control site) were investigated. It was observed that vehicular emissions strike air pollution tolerance index, leaf pigments (proline, carotenoids, phaeophytine), anticipated performance index, along with anatomical variations in stomata, palisade ratio and vein-islet ratio in selected tree species. The analysis revealed that for combating vehicular-pollution in urban areas Mangifera indica was found to be tolerant and excellent categorized tree species while Alstonia scholaris, Ficus religiosa and Cassia siamea as sensitive to vehicular exhaust. The variations in foliage architecture can serve as a biomonitoring tool of vehicular emissions in urban areas.

The present investigation was conducted to estimate the total carbon sequestered by urban trees in Thane city (India). The total tree biomass, total stored carbon, and CO2 removed by urban trees was determined by with allometric model/volume equations and compared. Using random sampling plot method 50 plots with 0.04 ha each, generated to facilitate measurements of trees. It was observed that, carbon sequestration (kgC/tree) was highest in Azadirachta indica, 3,289.8 kgC/tree, followed by Ficus benghalensis (2,375.5 kgC/tree), Tamarindius indica (1,666.9 kgC/tree), Casurina equisetifolia (1,530.5 kgC/tree) and Pongamia pinnata (865.9 kgC/tree). The investigation data will be helpful to evaluate the role of urban trees in reducing atmospheric the carbon dioxide. The study will also be useful in assessment of carbon storage potential of the several regions, which are under the threat of air pollution issues worldwide in near future.