Ireland's environment: Air

Current trends in air quality

The ambient air quality pollutants of most concern on an EU-wide level are nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter (PM), ground-level ozone and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs). They can impact on human health, ecosystems and vegetation. Monitoring is carried out to determine their concentration levels.

The main source of nitrogen oxides (NO_x) in Ireland is emissions from traffic, along with electricity generating stations and industry.

Particulate matter (fine particles) can penetrate the lungs and cause health effects. PM_2.5 tends to be a better signifier of man-made pollution (including domestic solid fuel burning, diesel-fuelled vehicle emissions), whereas PM₁₀ can have a greater contribution from natural sources (such as sea salt and wind-blown dust).

Levels of ozone in Ireland are highly influenced by transboundary sources. Though low in comparison with levels in mainland Europe, levels of ozone are higher in rural areas across Ireland than in urban areas.

PAHs are organic compounds predominantly originating from solid fuel burning, particularly wood burning and, to a lesser extent, vehicle emissions.

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Causes of air pollution

In Ireland, the number of premature deaths attributable to air pollution are estimated to be at least 1,300 people.

The most significant air pollutant is PM_2.5 which mainly arises from domestic solid fuel burning. Poor air quality leads to impacts on the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. The economic impact is also significant, with the increased costs of healthcare and lost working days.

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What's being done

Limit values have been established by the EU to help mitigate the impact of poor quality air on Member State populations. The EU air quality Directives are currently undergoing review, towards aligning the air quality standards more closely with the current WHO air quality guidelines (2021).

Upon exceedance of these limit values, Member States must implement air quality plans to assess and combat the problem. Local Authorities in Dublin and its suburbs, have submitted an air quality action plan to address exceedances in the EU limit for nitrogen dioxide.

A national monitoring network supplies an ever increasing level of real-time data on air quality to the Irish public. The EPA co-ordinates and manages a nationwide network of monitoring stations which measures the levels of air pollutants and delivers this information to the public on www.airquality.ie The expanded network and citizen science projects ensure enhanced availability of accessible real-time air quality information to the public and can inform national policy development.

The EPA’s Air Quality Index for Health (AQIH) informs the public about the current air quality in their localised area, and whether or not it might affect their health. Calculated every hour, the AQIH is being used by health professionals to help patients who are sensitive to air pollution to manage their condition. https://airquality.ie/information/air-quality-index-for-health

Outlook for Ireland's air quality

A key future challenge for Ireland is in decreasing our particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) and ground-level ozone concentration levels below the more stringent World Health Organisation (WHO) air quality guideline values.

Tackling transport sector pollutants will require a combination of secured national investment, advancements in technology, policy developments and, a shift in behaviour by us as individuals. Emphasis and priority should be given to clean public transport or cleaner transport choices over conventional internal combustion vehicles in all aspects of society. However, it is also the individual choices that people make that will have the most immediate and greatest impact on transport emissions in our urban areas where NO₂ is problematic and where public transport is a viable option.

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