Monitoring & Assessment: Air Publications

Air Quality in Ireland 2017

Key Indicators of Ambient Air Quality.

Summary: Ambient air quality trends based on concentration measurements in 2017 of particulate matter, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, heavy metals, ozone, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and benzene.

Air Quality in Ireland 2017

• Air monitoring data from 29 stations in the National Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Network was assessed against EU legislative limits and target values for the protection of human health and vegetation

 

• No levels above the EU legislative limit values were recorded at any of the ambient air quality network monitoring sites in Ireland in 2017

 

• Air monitoring data was also compared to the much more stringent World Health Organization (WHO) guideline values and EEA estimated reference level

 

• The tighter World Health Organization (WHO) air quality guideline values were exceeded at a number of monitoring sites for particulate matter (PM₁₀ and PM_2.5), ozone and NO₂:
  • the PM₁₀ 24hr guideline was exceeded at 11 monitoring sites
  • the PM_2.5 24hr guideline was exceeded at 9 monitoring sites and the annual guideline at 1 monitoring site
  • the ozone guideline was exceeded at 9 monitoring sites
  • the NO₂ 1hr guideline was exceeded at 1 monitoring site

 

• The European Environment Agency reference level for Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) was exceeded at 4 monitoring sites.

 

• The 2017 dioxin survey shows that concentrations of dioxins and similar pollutants remain at a consistently low level in the Irish environment.

 

• The 2017 data show that burning of solid fuel is the biggest threat to good air quality in Ireland, followed by emissions from vehicle exhausts.

 

• The National Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Programme (AAMP) is on track to expand the National Monitoring Network by 16 new stations in 2018, with upgrades to 10 existing stations to real-time particulate monitoring. This will result in more than doubling the number of stations providing accessible real-time air quality information compared to 2017.

 

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