Efficient control of air pollution through plants, a cost-effective alternative: studies on Dalbergia sissoo Roxb C. S. Kapoor & B. R. Bamniya & K. Kapoor Received: 15 September 2012 / Accepted: 30 January 2013 # Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013 Abstract Plants can be used as both passive biomoni- tors and biomitigators in urban and industrial environ- ments to indicate the environmental quality and to ameliorate pollution level in a locality. Many studies reveal that plants are negatively affected by the ambient levels of air pollutants. The present study was conducted to evaluate the impact of air pollution on comparative basis with reference to changes in photosynthetic pig- ments, plant height, leaves, as well as, biochemical parameters of plants of different sites around Udaipur city receiving varying levels of pollution load. The investigated tree species Dalbergia sissoo Roxb. (Family: Fabaceae) exhibited a reduction in various physiological and biochemical growth parameters that correspond with air pollution levels at different sites. The tree species growing in polluted and control areas were compared with respect to foliar dust load, leaf area, and chlorophyll and total carbohydrate and total protein concentration in the leaves. Our studies suggest that D. sissoo Roxb. can successfully be grown in an area for monitoring air pollution, where it is mild and droughts are common. It will prove as an ideal tree species to control pollution effectively beside acting as a shade tree and being a source of food for birds and animals. By plantation of D. sissoo Roxb., mitigative measure at the polluted sites to control generation of particulate matter and the air quality required can be ensured. Our results also confirm that industrial and vehicular air pollution level in Udaipur city is shifting beyond limits. Keywords Toxic gases . Industrialization . Dalbergia sissoo Roxb . Physiological responses . Air pollutants Introduction Natural air pollution existed around us for millions of years, but during the last century, pollution created by humans has become a major concern. Air pollution is a major environmental health problem affecting the devel- oping and the developed countries alike. It is not only the ambient air quality in the cities but also the indoor air quality in the rural and the urban areas that are causing concern, and highest air pollution exposures are in the indoor environment. We are most familiar with visible air pollution like smog; however, many other types of air pollution, including some of the most dangerous, are totally invisible. Air pollutants rarely exist singly, but the combined pollutants may have synergistic, additive, or antagonistic effects. These directly affect the quality of life, human’ s and other beings’ health, and climate. Because of its general impact on environment and health, air pollution is continuously monitored worldwide in Environ Monit Assess DOI 10.1007/s10661-013-3119-1 C. S. Kapoor (*) : B. R. Bamniya Department of Environmental Sciences, Mohan Lal Sukhadia University, Udaipur 313001 Rajasthan, India e-mail: drcskapoor@yahoo.co.in K. Kapoor Department of Botany, Mohan Lal Sukhadia University, Udaipur 313001 Rajasthan, India