Lancaster District Air Quality Hub

Lancaster City Council has been successful in a Defra Air Quality grant bid of £198,000 for a project which aims to improve public awareness around air pollution.

The Lancaster District Air Quality Hub is an online portal designed to provide information to the public about air quality across the Lancaster district. Twelve Zephyr air quality sensors are located across the district and provide near real-time information on the concentrations of key air pollutants such as particulate matter (PM_2.5 and PM₁₀) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂).

The aim of the Air Quality Hub is to improve knowledge and awareness relating to local air quality, and to allow members of the public to make informed decisions about their activities which may impact their own exposure or contribution to air pollution.

Coming soon! You will soon be able to access the Lancaster District Air Quality Hub from here. Watch this space.

The Air Quality Hub forms one aspect of a larger Defra funded Lancaster City Council project which aims to:

1. Use a network of air quality sensors to monitor the outdoor concentrations of key pollutants throughout the locality. This data is displayed on the Lancaster Air Quality Hub online portal.
2. Gain insight into emissions coming from solid fuel burning in comparison to other sources across the district.
3. Use the information we collect about air quality to improve public knowledge and awareness.
4. Work closely with the community, groups, and schools* to engage the public, using the data to feed into educational programmes and initiatives to reduce emissions and increase awareness and knowledge about air pollution.

*A number of hand-held, easy to use, air quality sensors have been purchased for use by students in schools. The place-based air quality project will cover the geography skills and fieldwork area of the KS2 national curriculum and is in line with the principles of the Morecambe Bay Curriculum. Currently in the pilot stage, the project will grow and evolve following initial feedback, with the aim of being rolled out to other schools.

Have your say. We want to know your thoughts and opinions about local air quality. You will soon have the opportunity to have your say via a public survey.

If you would like to know more about the project or would be interested in getting involved, please get in touch at environmentalhealth@lancaster.gov.uk.

 

Last updated: 07 September 2023