Airborne particulate matter (PM) is the most serious air pollutant and strongly affects public health, air quality and climate. Air quality is usually good in Cork and across Ireland, but there are recurring episodes when air pollution builds up to extremely high levels in winter. To monitor air quality, Cork City Council (CCC) in collaboration with the Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry (CRAC), has set up a unique network of low-cost PM sensors across the city and an internet-based air quality information service displaying corrected sensor readings.

The current project builds on this foundation to explore forecasting of local air quality based on historical data and weather forecasts.  Emission rates of pollutants are driven by regular cycles of economic activity and seasonal activities. Severe pollution events occur when meteorological factors trap local emissions and pollution levels build up. Recent CRAC analyses carried out in Cork and Dublin has found that estimates of PM_2.5 and NO_x levels based on meteorological and temporal parameters are within 3-5% of the measured levels. Information about future air quality, whether hours or a few days ahead of time, would allow Cork City Council to take active steps to forewarn the public. Air quality forecasting will be led by Dr Stig Hellebust and Dr Dean Venables from CRAC and the Environmental Research Institute (ERI).

A second part of the study, led by Dr Marica Cassarino in Applied Psychology, will investigate the extent to which city residents would engage with air quality forecasts. This is a critical element of the project. This work will survey public opinions about how they would respond to air quality forecasts and explore what people know about air quality and its impact on health. Information from the survey will inform effective public messaging and the narrative needed to engage the public about air quality. Both air quality forecasting and public messaging will keep Cork city as a leading local authority in air quality management.

This interdisciplinary project is funded by Cork City Council.

You can find out more information on this project by contacting the lead investigators below

For questions on the survey aspect of the project:

Please contact Dr Marica Cassarino, mcassarino@ucc.ie (School of Applied Psychology)

For questions on the project overall:

Please contact Dr Stig Hellebust, s.hellebust@ucc.ie (Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry, ERI) or Dr Dean Venables, d.venables@ucc.ie (Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry, ERI).

For questions on the project overall:

Please contact Dr Stig Hellebust, s.hellebust@ucc.ie (Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry, ERI) or Dr Dean Venables, d.venables@ucc.ie (Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry, ERI).