14 days of poor air quality in Brussels
If you have been outside in the last few weeks, you probably have felt the icy temperatures and cold winter weather, which also affects our health due to higher pollution in our cities.
Our air quality sensors that are placed near the busiest areas in Brussels, detected concentrations well above the European thresholds in the city and around, so your workout may be more affected by the air quality than you would think.
The polluants
Airscan focused on two main pollutants that are both dangerous for our health if they occur in high concentrations: PM2.5 (Particulate Matter with maximum diameter of 2.5µg) and NO2 (Nitrogen Dioxide).
Over a two-week period, we detected several days where the European and Belgian threshold of 10 µg/m3 for PM2.5 and 10 ppb for NO2 had been exceeded. On some days, like the 12th of January, concentrations were more than twice as high as the European and Belgian threshold and even four times higher than the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines.
Figure 1: avg PM2.5 and NO2 levels vs the average temperature
As can be seen on the graphs, temperature is a mirror image of both pollutants, which indicated that lower temperatures result in higher pollution concentration. A contributing factor is the increased use of cars and heating systems during colder weather, which then results in higher pollutant concentrations:
Figure 2: number of cars vs daily NO2
For most of the period, the concentrations aligned with the trend observed in the cars, which shows the significant role vehicles play in air pollution. The concentrations remained above the threshold for most of the period, so that can explain your breathing difficulties in the last days. As mentioned before, PM2.5 also plays an important role in the air quality, but the high concentrations are more likely to come from residential pollution such as increased use of heating.
Health risks
Due to the small size of the PM2.5 particles, they can penetrate in our respiratory system, causing problems like asthma, irritation of the airways or decreased lung function. Causes of premature deaths have been linked to this pollutant as well.
Inhaling NO2 also causes bronchial inflammation and reduced pulmonary flow. Working out in these conditions would have implications like increased blood pressure and coughing during workouts for example.
Forecast and recommandations
In the coming days, rain is expected, with wind speeds predicted to increase by the end of the week. Temperatures are also forecasted to rise slightly. This change of weather will influence the air quality as rain has a wash-out effect and wind will dilute and disperse the pollutants, transporting them to another place. Concentrations should therefore decrease, but the goal is to prevent them from reaching such levels in the first place.
To help reduce air pollution, we suggest carpooling, public transport, using bikes or opting for shared and electric cars for your daily commute. Additionally, reduce the use of chimneys and try to insulate your homes as good as possible, as this will increase the energy efficiency and lower the emissions so that you can contribute to cleaner air and a healthier future for everyone.
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