Well, maybe you should have… if you’re concerned about ILLEGAL levels of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) in the air that is.
Recently, roadside air pollution monitors across Greater Manchester in the UK have detected illegal levels of NO2 at a whopping 60 locations, prompting these combative mums to write “Illegal Air Pollution Recorded Here” beside the monitors. A further 78 locations have been classified as “At risk of exceeding legal limits.”
What's more, government data from last year show Manchester to have the worst levels of pollution across all local authorities, despite the fact that legal levels should have been complied with 14 years ago! Even worse, according to research published by Friends of the Earth, 1,244 out of 1,258 schools – that’s a staggering 99% - across Greater Manchester breach the World Health Organization limit for NO2. See the whole article from Air Quality News here.
The WHO concentration limits for NO2 are "10 µg/m3 annual average and 25 µg/m3 24-hour mean." As per as our government figures for 2023, average NO2 in Hong Kong was measured as 66 µg/m3 at roadside stations and 32 µg/m3 at general stations.
In its press release on Hong Kong’s Air Quality in 2023, the EPD reassured us all that air quality will continuously improve in line with the Clean Air Plan for Hong Kong 2035 and our Climate Action Plan 2050.
We at AirGuard recommend that schools and residents in areas of high traffic density take matters into their own hands to monitor NO2 levels, if possible outdoors, but certainly indoors. There are IAQ sensors that can do that, and the data will then show you in real-time if you should invest in some NO2 filtration.
We should all remember the true words of Dr Sinead Millwood of the Hawthorn Medical Centre in Greater Manchester: "Air pollution damages everyone’s health but children are especially vulnerable as their lungs, brains and immune systems are still developing. Breathing polluted air has been shown to affect brain development, impacting on children’s ability to learn, and can cause and exacerbate asthma and lung infections."
So let's take a leaf out the Manchester Mums' book and get serious about NO2 now!