The dust emission from the mining area is the primary source of air pollution for the surrounding environment. This paper
deals with the study of baseline air quality assessment and air pollution modeling exercise for a mica, feldspar, and quartz
mine to predict the maximum dust concentration from the mine with and without control measures. Baseline PM10, PM2.5,
SO2, and NO2 levels in the bufer zone of the planned mine site were found to be 53.1–79.5, 20.2–43.2, 16.6–31.2, and
21.2–50.1 mg m−3, respectively, and these values were lesser than the corresponding permissible limit of 100, 60, 80, and
80 µg m−3. The respective predicted PM10 and PM2.5 levels will be 73.9–97.1 and 31.9–44.2 mg m−3 without control measures, and 73.5–82.5 and 31.8–43.8 µg m−3 with control measures during operation of the mine. It is estimated that PM10and PM2.5 will remain below the permissible limit in the buffer zone of the mine. The paper suggests effective air pollution control measures, including a description of the developed smart dry fog dust suppression system and wirelessly controlled sprinkling system for applications at various dust emitting sources in the mining area
