Air Quality Sensing

The Challenge

Air pollution has been an issue since the first smokestacks went up at the outset of The Industrial Revolution in the UK. While there are natural causes, such as wildfires and volcano eruptions, most of the air pollution today comes from human activities. The increased level of pollutants in the air has long-term effects on both human health and nature. Particles such as sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide create acid rain and attribute to climate change. Breathing in pollutants also leads to long-term health effects such as heart disease, lung cancer and other respiratory diseases, with Public Health England estimating that up to 36,000 deaths a year are attributed to air pollution in England alone.

According to the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, the economic impact of air pollution is estimated to cost the UK between £9 – £19 billion every year. Investing in monitoring and reducing air pollution levels can help local authorities reduce this cost and improve the health of their citizens and the environment.

The main source of air pollution in South Gloucestershire is road traffic. South Gloucestershire Council wants to further understand the effects of traffic on the local air quality so that they can design policies that have the most impact on combatting air pollution, without compromising the economy of the region. Air quality is affected by several factors relating to traffic:

• Whether the traffic is flowing or standing.
• Traffic composition – the ratio of old to new vehicles, types of fuel, and engine start/stop technology prevalence.
• The speed of the vehicles – the slower the speed the higher the concentration of pollution particles.
• Location – pollutants concentration quickly deteriorates as you move away from the carriageway.
• Street layout and adjacent building height (e.g. canyon effects)