outdoor air quality
Major SOURCES OF AIR POLLUTION
92% of the world population lives in places where the air quality guidelines levels were not met. Air pollution has become a major environmental and public health problem for everyone. There is currently, a real need among citizens to understand how to live in an environment that pollution is making more and more hostile to good health and well-being.
Major Pollutants: Particulate Matter (PM10 & PM2.5), Carbon Monoxide (CO), Ozone (O3), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) and Sulfur Dioxide (SO2).
Smart cities are springing up all over the world to counter the air pollution issues that threatens our health and the way of life of millions of people. Improving the quality of life is therefore a considerable challenge for these cities, by providing them with our smart air quality monitoring systems, we allow these cities to draw up the most hyper-local air quality map of their streets, roads, buildings & more, at the most precise scale possible.
With our help, citizens can closely track pollutants, and this cities are able to take accurate counter-measures to help reduce their pollution impact on air quality.
Learn more about our smart city solutions
Health consequences of Air Pollution
indoor air quality
We spend approximately 90% of our time indoors, at home, at school, at the office. However, some research has shown that the air within homes and other buildings can be more polluted than the outdoor air. By monitoring air quality inside, we can suggest solutions, scenarios to make air quality better.
Air pollution sources & health effects
Potential long-term health effects:
Rhinitis
Respiratory disease
Cancer
Death
Potential Short-term health effects:
Eyes & throat irritation
Allergies
Asthma
Fatigue
Headaches
Congestion
How the levels of CO2 and VOC concentrations
can affect your performance?
A study done by the Department of Environmental Health of Harvard, SUNY Upstate Medical School, and Syracuse University showed that workers, exhibited significantly lowered cognitive functioning, after spending a day in a conventional office environment featuring high concentrations of carbon dioxide and volatile organic compounds.
Whereas in conditions set to simulate a green building, or in a green+ building with enhanced ventilation, cognitive performance was higher. Carbon dioxide levels, in particular, seemed to have a major effect. Even for moderate level of CO2 (~945 ppm), cognitive function scores were 15% lower.
Gas leak
Gas leak can pose a significant hazard in each placed that store chemical or gas (industrial environment, residential homes, factories, pipelines...). Methane is an example of a colorless, odorless and extremely inflammable gas that have caused fatal explosions.
Even if the gas is not inflammable or toxic, at a high concentration, it may displace oxygen in a confined place and decreased oxygen can cause suffocation, loss of consciousness, headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea vomiting and loss of coordination.
We have developed solutions for the monitoring of gas leaks and we make sure to keep the well-being of the workers and the facilities in which they work safer than before, guaranteed by the reliability of our patented products.
How to be aware of the pollution near you ?
Check the air quality in your city with eLichens Air Quality Map
or with eLichens Air app on Android / IOS