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Description
The main applicant is the KORIDOR D8 association which started its activities as an association of municipalities and associations of the Koridor D8 in 2017. The municipalities involved in the project, based on a signed letter of intent, consider the measurement of air quality to be very important. These are 12 municipalities of the Central Bohemian Region: Veltrusy, Dřínov, Nová Ves, Panenské Břežany, Postřižín, Sedlec, Veliká Ves, Zdiby, Zlosyň, Klecany, Předboj, Odolena Voda.
A network of sensor measurements and meteocomplete will be installed in these locations in order to locate the problem and inform about the state of the environment and propose measures to improve air quality. Based on this, the project will have a positive impact on the environment in these locations. Regular air monitoring will also enable the municipality to better influence the citizens and increase their ownership of air pollution, as well as improve their readiness to request additional funding for the right measures and to implement these corrective measures. In the municipalities, 36 sites in the area with local heating installations will be surveyed and verified by reference measurements.
All data will be transferred online to the MYSQL data repository and further displayed as points, areas and graphs. The data can be further exported for further work. Each measured site will have a card (location, description, photos), the system will also store sensor information, especially valid factors determined at the beginning and during monitoring. Operation, data analysis and interpretation will be provided by the project partner VŠB TU Ostrava.
Summary of project results
The project focused on the acquisition, operation, and evaluation of sensor measurement technology. The primary goal was to verify the suitability of sensor technology for measuring air quality in municipalities, particularly with respect to local heating. A significant issue is the growing popularity of using sensors to measure almost anything, including air quality, without basic responsibility for measurement quality. The market is literally flooded with sensors lacking laboratory validation. However, municipalities are part of public administration and need air quality measurements for their citizens. The results are used to implement measures such as boiler replacements, traffic optimization, or industrial interventions. Therefore, it is necessary to approach measurement responsibly.A database was prepared in the project for further use by the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute (CHMI) and for transferring experiences to other projects. The database is native, meaning it includes all events that occurred on the sensors, such as outages, extremes, high or low sensitivity, etc. This is to understand the correct selection and ensure responsible operation of the sensors. Additionally, the project found that municipalities are very heterogeneous areas and air pollution (PMx) is uneven. This may be due to local influences or sensor errors, which will need to be further monitored in the data. The project, however, provides extensive experience, allowing for appropriate adjustment of measurement quality. The measurement also demonstrated that sensors cannot replace reference measurements, which are far more robust and under constant control. Nevertheless, area data from sensors can be used for interpretations, albeit with all necessary reservations.
The sensors were supplied from a vendor through a public tender ENVITECH Bohemia, and a fundamental requirement for their order was calibration before starting the measurements. The calibration took place at CHMI, where all sensors were calibrated simultaneously, using the dust measurement device FIDAS as a reference. The measurement lasted 40 days, resulting in a validation report. Before the heating season, monitoring locations for the sensor placement were selected, and the sensors were gradually installed in these locations before the temperature drop and the actual start of the heating season. The validated sensors were continuously monitored by the operators, and the data was transmitted online to the Smartenvi.eu web server. The dataset was handed over to CHMI in the agreed format for further utilization, and the data is described in the project''s Final Report. The management of the involved municipalities used the results for regular citizen updates and plans to continue using the data for sustainability purposes. The main benefit for the field of air protection is the created data base, which can help with data autovalidation, sensor self-checks, and advanced interpretation in the future. It is already clear that the sensors can be used to understand emission/immission events in the municipality and can be a valuable tool for protecting air quality. This need will grow with the European Union''s pressure to tighten limits from 2030 onwards.
The main output is a supervised database that will further serve to set up sensors as auxiliary measuring devices. The measurements also demonstrated that an advantage of the sensors is their deployment in a network; the sensors correlate very well and their measurements are acceptably accurate. The issue remains with the correctness of the measured values compared to reference methods. The project results indicate that sensor measurements are indicative in relation to limits and need to be continuously supervised. At the same time, the situation in the area is well described, such as whether there are any local sources of air pollution in the municipality - e.g., burning of low-quality fuels. The municipality has a great interest in the measurements as an educational tool and for discussions with citizens. For instance, the extreme air pollution at midnight during a fireworks display, which led to concentrations in the range of 10,000 micrograms, raises the question of whether such activities should be restricted. Other problematic activities include burning grass and leaves or negligence during construction work. The municipal leadership wants to invest in air protection measures in the future, if possible, and continuous monitoring will help them to select and control measures more effectively. The average PM10 concentrations during the heating season in some municipalities exceed the legal limit, for example, in Sedlec, the PM10 concentration during the heating season was 88 µg/m3 with a maximum hourly concentration of 334 µg/m3. The sensors correlate with each other in the range of 0.8 - 1.0, indicating that the network is consistent. The measurement yield of sensors in most cases exceeds 90%. Additionally, the Central Bohemian Region, or rather the applicant Association, is addressing the transportation issue, which may also contribute to increased dust levels.
Air quality remains a crucial issue for our citizens, and therefore, public administration focuses on its protection. The Koridor D8 project was aimed at continuous monitoring of suspended particles PM10 and PM2.5. Municipalities generally know that they need to address dust pollution, but despite their knowledge of the area, they are unable to identify the biggest offenders. In combination with the TENT (TROMSO) project, the measurement is one of the outputs of Action Plans and supports sensible activities in the locality – from caring for greenery and cleaning roads to transport infrastructure and energy. Action Plans are a repository of possible measures that need to be continuously monitored. Given the EU deadlines in the Green Deal policy, the year 2030 is very close, and significant legislative changes related to air protection will occur that year. If municipalities are not prepared, it will be very difficult to achieve changes that positively impact health. Conversely, it is a pity that the entire public administration is not systematically affected, as problems can also arise in areas that currently appear to be in good condition.