Quality of life in cities: the air you breathe ??

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According to the World Health Organization (WHO), millions of people around the world continue to breathe unhealthy air on a daily basis, with almost the entire world's population (99%) breathing air that exceeds WHO-recommended air quality limits and endangers their health.

In fact, more than 6,000 cities in 117 countries are already monitoring the quality of the air their residents breathe through IoT technology systems. Despite this, citizens continue to breathe unhealthy levels of fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide, to the point of being highly harmful to health, with a risk of premature death.

There is also a direct correlation between levels of city development and the degree of air pollution: the air in 17% of cities in high-income countries is below the thresholds set in the WHO Air Quality Guidelines for PM2.5 or PM10. In low- and middle-income countries, more than 99% of cities have air quality below WHO-recommended thresholds.

The April 2022 update of the World Health Organization's air quality database introduces for the first time ground-based measurements of annual average concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a common urban pollutant and precursor of particulate matter and ozone. It also includes measurements of particulate matter with diameters equal to or smaller than 10 μm (PM10) or 2.5 μm (PM2.5).? Both groups of pollutants originate mainly from fossil fuel combustion activities, mainly vehicle use.

Breathing is the essence of life

As the number of cities committed to measuring air pollution increases, more scientific evidence is emerging on the harm that air pollution causes to the human body, even at low levels of many air pollutants.

Particulate matter, especially PM2.5, is able to penetrate deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream, affecting the cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and respiratory systems. There is growing evidence that particulate matter affects other organs and causes other diseases as well.

Nitric Oxide (NO2) is associated with respiratory diseases, particularly asthma, leading to respiratory symptoms, hospital admissions and increased use of hospital emergency rooms.

... And in this situation, what can municipalities do?

• Review and implement national air quality standards in line with the latest WHO guidelines.
• Monitor air quality and identify sources of air pollution, using accurate and reliable measurement technology.
• Support the transition to the exclusive use of clean energy in households.
• Build safe and affordable public transport systems and networks for pedestrians and cyclists.
• Enforce stricter vehicle emissions and efficiency standards.
• Invest in efficient housing and energy generation systems.
• Improve industrial and municipal waste management.
• Reduce agricultural waste incineration, forest fires and certain agro-forestry activities (e.g. charcoal production).
• Include air pollution in the curricula of health professionals and provide tools to promote the involvement of the health sector.

"After surviving a pandemic, it is unacceptable that there are still 7 million avoidable deaths and countless avoidable years of good health lost due to air pollution,"

Says Dr Maria Neira, Director of WHO's Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health.

In short, one of the first steps to be able to take the necessary corrective measures in air quality is to know the levels of each of the key parameters to be measured.

Good knowledge of the technological language and science of air quality measurement helps to choose the best air quality station on the market

The Air Quality Index (AQI) is an important indicator for reflecting on and evaluating air quality.

It is crucial that Governments, industries and individuals drastically reduce air pollution in the next few years; it is one of the most urgent challenges for all of us.

Air Quality Index is calculated using six main pollutants: Particulate Matter (PM2.5, PM10), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Ozone (O3), Sulfur Dioxide (SO2), and Carbon Monoxide (CO).

AQI measures general air quality on a scale from 0 to 300 divided into six levels (Good, Moderate, Harmful for sensitive people, Harmful, Very Harmful, and Dangerous). These levels show the impact of air quality on human health and provide a good reference for policy decision-making on health, economy, or mobility.?

Good knowledge of the technological language and science of air quality measurement helps to choose the best air quality station on the market.?

For this reason, we invite you to learn the key concepts commonly used in the Air Quality field. In our Glossary you will find terminology for statistical and scientific concepts, mathematical and computer science, and chemical and other air quality parameters.?

You can find out what these key parameters are in our Air Quality Glossary: