Mayor makes clean air pledge as new pollution monitoring system is set up

Work is underway to install a new network of sensors to significantly increase air quality monitoring outside homes, schools, hospitals and sports centres.

Later this year, near-live data from the sensors will be made publicly available online by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) so people can see for themselves just how clean the air in their neighbourhood actually is.

The 90 sensors will provide the first region-wide monitoring of microscopic particles given off by things like wood burners, vehicle tyres and factories. These tiny particulates can exacerbate long term health conditions, including asthma, coronary heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer.

Accessing this data will give local people a greater insight into pollution levels in their area so they can better understand the sources of pollution and take their own actions to improve their health and quality of life.

Each year in the West Midlands, around 2,300 people die early due to long term exposure to air pollution.

Ahead of International Clean Air Day this Saturday, (7 September), Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands and WMCA chair, visited Dudley to see one of the new sensors being installed near to Pegasus Academy.

Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands and WMCA chair, centre, with Tim Dexter is the Clean Air Lead at Asthma and Lung UK, Owen Gardener, head of operations at EarthSense, Kevin Tranter, chief operating officer at Dudley Academies Trust, and Maddy Dawe, campaign manager at Asthma and Lung UK, outside Pegasus Academy in Dudley.

The Mayor said: “On my first day as Mayor, I met a group of schoolchildren who made a powerful case for more action to tackle air pollution to improve their health and protect their futures.

“These new sensors are just the latest tool in our fight against pollution and will give our communities real-world information about the quality of the air they are breathing. That information will also tell them the main sources of pollution in their area and what they can do to improve air quality.”

The WMCA successfully applied for £1.5 million of Government funding to significantly boost the air quality monitoring that is already carried out by local councils. The data will be used to better understand pollution trends and levels to target investment where it is most needed.

The funding will also support behaviour change campaigns and work to raise awareness about the health impacts of pollution.

These are the priority measures in the first West Midlands-wide Air Quality Framework - a longer-term plan that sets out measures that must be considered by the WMCA, local authorities, central government, businesses and local communities to accelerate improvements to air quality on a regional scale.

Kevin Tranter, chief operating officer at Dudley Academies Trust, which includes Pegasus Academy, said: “Our school is based on a main road so it’s really important our learners, their parents and our staff are aware of air quality. Our learners have rightly identified air quality as among the sustainability and environmental issues that are really important to them.

“As part of our sustainability strategy, we have eco councils in all of the schools across our Trust to help identify the issues and develop initiatives that respond to them. We’ve recently removed single use plastics from our catering and are absolutely supportive of other measures like these new air sensors so our school can continue to contribute solutions to addressing sustainability.”

Maddy Dawe, regional air quality lead at Asthma + Lung UK, said: "“It’s fantastic to see the first air quality sensor of the new network installed outside Pegasus Academy, a school located next to two main roads, so that air quality can be monitored in real time. Gathering data is crucial to improve our understanding of air pollution hotspots, so that urgent measures to tackle toxic air can be put in place.

“Children are most vulnerable to the impacts of toxic air as it stunts the growth of their lungs, which can damage their health for the rest of their lives.

“Asthma + Lung UK has been calling on the Mayor of West Midlands to prioritise improving air quality across the region, so we welcome this latest development. We hope the data from the sensors will be used to introduce targeted interventions to protect children’s lung health and the most vulnerable communities, providing them with cleaner air and a healthier future.”

The air quality sensors are being supplied, installed and monitored by Earthsense, which specialises in environmental monitoring and modelling of air pollution data to enable both public and private sectors to visualise and manage air quality challenges.