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Description
The project lies in acquiring and installing air quality sensors for local monitoring with emphasis on the issue of household heating (so-called local heating sites) accompanied and verified by reference measurements. Measurements of dust particles will be carried out over one year in six selected municipalities of the South Moravian Region (SMR) and in two selected urban districts of the city of Brno, which to some extent, still have a predominantly rural character. The emphasis in the selection will be on the possibility of comparing municipalities with different ratios of heating sources. This comparison is one of the critical expected benefits of the project. In addition, sensors will be installed in up to 4 locations in each evaluated municipality so that the monitoring covers the entire municipality, its built-up area, the landscape relief and all the main meteorological conditions. Beyond the sensor measurements, the project activities will also include the analysis of dust particles in RECETOX laboratories - accredited analysis of 29 PAHs to identify potential health risks to which the population in the localities is exposed. Following the health risk assessment, an estimate of the economic costs of these health risks will be made and a survey of residents will be carried out, focusing on the heating method in the municipality, as well as on identifying the residents'' awareness of the health risks of air pollution and, above all, on identifying their willingness to change their heating method or to change to ensure a higher energy standard of their property, including the willingness to pay to achieve such a change and identifying the key barriers that the residents subjectively perceive.
Summary of project results
In the project we focused on testing the possibility of using low-cost sensors for air quality monitoring with respect to solid fuel heating in small settlements. The project also combined a unique measurement concept based on the use of sensors and accredited sampling techniques and their subsequent analysis. To identify potential risks, we used the concept of connecting four measurement points within one municipality.
We used sensor technology for long-term monitoring of air quality in small settlements in the South Moravian Region with local heating systems. The project started in mid2023. In six municipalities of the South Moravian Region and in two urban districts of the city of Brno, long-term air quality measurements during the heating season were carried out using sensor technology supplemented by accredited dust sampling with follow-up analysis of 29 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, including carcinogenic ones, which was subsequently applied to the health risk analysis. These hazardous substances typically originate from local domestic heating. This is currently one of the main air problems in the Czech Republic. The most problematic are old, unmaintained solid fuel boilers in which people burn what they should not.
In the AIRSENS project we have successfully used a new approach based on a unique combination of the following elements: (i) the application of new sensor measurements of air quality, (ii) the use of autonomous measurement units even for locations without access to electricity (photovoltaic power supply), (iii) the application of 4 sites per small municipality for a sufficiently dense measurement network, (iv) meteorological sensors for wind directions and wind speed, which are important for dispersion conditions in the municipality, (v) the use of meteorological measurements (temperature, humidity) to refine the sensor signal recalculations, which depend heavily on these parameters, (vi) and last but not least, the interconnection of all these devices and sensors into a single wireless IoT network with a central evaluation server with a link to a visualization web interface. It is by using more measuring points in the municipalities that the impact of possible actions to reduce pollution can also be properly monitored.
In terms of suspended particulate matter, it can be assessed that the current limit could be exceeded even after annual averaging for PM2.5 in two municipalities that have a high share of solid fuel use and a more complicated terrain that does not allow easy dispersion of local emissions. The questionnaire survey showed a relatively low willingness of residents to change the heating of their properties due to a very low awareness of the negative impacts of air pollution on their health, combined with a lack of acceptance of their own coresponsibility in relation to air pollution in the vicinity. Nevertheless, positive trends in heating systems are observed, especially the introduction of water-to-air heat pump systems.
The use of a larger number of measuring points in one municipality can help monitor the impact of any implemeted measures to reduce pollution. Using the spatio-temporal analyses we have carried out, it is possible to trace the prevailing directions of spread and, where appropriate, to locate possible sources and areas of pollution in a given municipal area. Based on these analyses, more informed decisions can then be made in the future about measures that could help the local municipality in the long term. Our implementation of the project has been successful. It continues to show that local heating is a significant source of pollution in the Czech Republic.