What do we breathe? How the air monitoring system works in Kyiv

Dangerous levels of air pollution have become not just numbers in environmental reports, but a reality that Kyiv residents face every day. We have all been observing heavy dust and smog in the capital for weeks, and the indicators in Kyiv Digital were frighteningly high. Therefore, UNN checked who and how monitors air quality in Kyiv and what impact pollution has on people's health.

People feel tired, headaches and suffocation, but they don't always think that the air we breathe is the cause of our poor health. Usually, we only pay attention to it when we smell an unpleasant odor or see a gray haze, or when we receive information that air pollution levels have been exceeded. But where do these indicators come from? Who collects and compiles the data and how? UNN decided to look into this issue.

Monitoring from the capital's authorities 

The air quality monitoring system introduced by the Kyiv city state administration is handled by the Department of Environmental Protection and adaptation to climate change.

The development of the capital's air quality monitoring system began in 2020. The Department says it was based on the experience of other countries. For example, Kyiv uses similar equipment as Vienna and Copenhagen. First, two reference (high-precision) stations were installed  to collect data on air quality. Later, in 2021, the system was supplemented with three more stations. And in 2022, before the full-scale invasion began, two additional posts were put into operation. So, in total, there are 7 air quality monitoring stations in Kyiv, located in Darnytskyi, Dniprovskyi, Podilskyi, Shevchenkivskyi, Sviatoshynskyi, and Holosiivskyi districts. However, according to Oleksandr Voznyi, Director of the Department of Environmental Protection and Climate Change Adaptation, there should be more stations.

"We need more of them. We need about 15-17 more, simply because all the equipment is imported and expensive, and during the period of martial law we suspended the purchase of this equipment, because now there are more important things to spend budget funds on. And 7 posts are enough to inform and collect information," explained Oleksandr Voznyi.

In addition to the reference (high-precision) stations, there are 46 more indicative sensors in the capital to help monitor air quality in areas of Kyiv where there are no main stations.

Reference stations and indicative sensors

The difference between reference stations and indicative sensors is that the latter collect samples with less frequency and measure them with less accuracy. Reference stations are container-sized posts that take up a small area and are quite autonomous, as they do not require a special employee to perform all the tasks. Everything is done by a computer. Such stations are designed to measure a wide range of pollutants with greater accuracy. Indicative sensors are smaller, can be placed on poles or trees, and their main function is to complement the entire system. However, some of the indicative  sensors are currently undergoing maintenance. But they are expected to be back soon.  

Sensors are regularly calibrated - this is the adjustment and verification of the accuracy of measuring devices, which establishes a correspondence between the readings of the device and the actual values that it should measure. This is done to make sure that the device shows the correct results during Operation. Also, the sensors are verified, that is, the issuance of an appropriate document on the serviceability of the equipment. 

Where can I see the results of the KCSA monitoring system analysis?

All the data collected by the sensors of the monitoring system is freely available to everyone and can be viewed either on the website of the Department or in the Kyiv Digital app.

"One of the advantages of the monitoring system is that it is automated and user-friendly.  in other words, all the data that sensors collect every minute is automatically sent to the system and residents of the city can monitor the air condition in real time in the Kiev digital application.",- said the director of the Department of Environmental Protection and adaptation to climate change.

Funds for the project were allocated from the city budget. However, the system was supplemented with funds from patrons. For example, after the start of the full-scale invasion, when the Nazis seized the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, people began to wonder about the radiation background in the capital. At that moment, a company responded by donating radiation measurement sensors to the city and integrating them into the monitoring system. That's why now, along with air quality, the Kyiv Digital app allows you to monitor the radiation background of the capital.

Boris Sreznevsky central Geophysical Observatory - what the monitoring system consists of

The Boris Sreznevsky central Geophysical Observatory has been monitoring air quality in the capital since 1965. Today, the observatory has 16 stationary observation posts equipped with the necessary instruments for air sampling. They are located in 8 out of 10 districts of Kiev. There are no PSZS only in Darnytskyi and Svyatoshynskyi districts.

In addition to Kyiv, the Borys Sreznevsky Central Geophysical Observatory also provides laboratory control readings for the Kyiv region. For example, there are posts in Bila Tserkva, Brovary, Ukrayinka, and Obukhiv. In addition, due to the lack of own chemical laboratories in Zhytomyr and Chernihiv, the Observatory analyzes samples for these cities as well.

"Once a week, samples are taken at their posts and sent to us. We analyze it, and at the end of the month we collect all the information, send it to our information department, and they provide them with information about air pollution in their cities. Then, based on all this data, we prepare a semi-annual report on the state of the air, as well as a yearbook for the whole of Ukraine," said Nina Rotach, head of the air pollution monitoring laboratory.

How the Central Geophysical Observatory studies the air

Sampling is carried out 4 times a day and is carried out in accordance with  existing state standards and guidelines. Here, the process of checking air quality takes a little longer, compared to the KCSA monitoring system. First, samples are taken in Glass devices-Richter absorbers or sorption tubes with a sorbent. Laboratory assistants come to the post, collect samples and take them to the laboratory. Atmospheric air samples are already being analyzed there in accordance with the requirements of the RD. 52. 04. 186-89 "guidelines for the control of atmospheric pollution" Moscow, 1991 

During the year, up to 80-90 thousand samples are taken at 16 posts of the Observatory, which are analyzed in the laboratory of observations of atmospheric air pollution.

For sample analysis, the laboratory uses photocolorimetric, atomic absorption, spectrophotometric and gas chromography methods, as well as traditional physico-chemical analysis methods.

The equipment that is used in the observatory to conduct an annual technical inspection, as well as the KCSA monitoring system, the above - mentioned ones are calibration and verification of instruments. Also this year, the laboratory for monitoring atmospheric air pollution was certified by the state enterprise "Ukrmetrteststandart". 

The Observatory publishes its research on its website in the form of daily tables with recorded indicators and in the form of summary information with indicators for the month. 

Alternative monitoring systems and how Kiev became a world leader in air pollution 

According to the general air pollution index, the capital is consistently included in the list of cities with high levels of pollution.

Among the international organizations that fight air pollution  is the Swiss company IQAir, which creates a global air quality index. Thus, in 2022, according to this company, Kyiv was included in the anti-rating of the most polluted cities in the world. At that time, the Department of Environmental Protection and Climate Change Adaptation was actively working on its air quality monitoring system. And they discovered that the source of information for IQAir was 8 anonymous users in Kyiv. As KCSA explains, these were people who had installed private sensors, for example, right in their backyard. The problem, according to Voznyi, was that these sensors measured pollution by only one indicator - PM 2.5 - and did not always provide accurate data. 

"Based on this data, Kyiv was ranked among the dirtiest cities. We began to develop the city's system, and we had more reliable information about the air quality. We contacted IQair and prepared the appropriate software for them to take data from the city's monitoring system. It was very important for them to operate with reliable data, which is defined by our regulations and laws. In addition, we do this with more accurate equipment," said Oleksandr Voznyi.

Since then, according to the director of the Department, Kiev has moved to the ratings of the cleanest  Capitals in the world. For example, in 2023, Kiev took the 22nd place in the rating with the cleanest air.

Everyone can get data from the monitoring system not only through Kiev digital or the already mentioned "IQAir", but also on the Saveecobot platform. In addition, you can see that air quality monitoring is also carried out by private initiatives, and the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv has its own post. 

In addition, the data is published on the World Air Quality Index project portal. The project's interactive map displays data from a large number of sensors. However, we were unable to find data from the monitoring system installed by KCSA. Instead, it displays sensors installed on private or public initiative (whether to trust their data or not is an open question), some of which have been inactive for a long time. Another source of information is the interactive map of Sensor.Community, a global sensor network that creates open data about the environment. But there are few sensors in the capital. 

The presence of what substances in the air is monitored and how dangerous they are

The main substances measured by the Department of Environmental Protection and Climate Change Adaptation monitoring system include: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen and carbon oxides, ozone, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, formaldehyde, and benzene.

Solid particles are also measured - fine dust generated during industrial production, fires, and waste combustion. The KCSA Air Quality Monitoring System records the state of the air using the caqi general air quality index. This index is measured by indicators of several pollutants, the concentration of which in large doses is harmful to human health. 

At the posts of the Boris Sreznevsky Central Geophysical Observatory, all the above substances are also selected and analyzed. But in addition to them, the laboratory takes measurements of suspended solids, soluble sulfates, nitrogen dioxide, phenol, hydrogen chloride and fluoride , heavy metals. 

The main pollutants in the air of the capital are formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide. The average annual concentrations of these substances exceed the average daily MPC (maximum permissible concentration) by 2-3 times. Especially in the warm seasons, the average monthly concentrations of these impurities can reach 5-6 times the sanitary and hygienic standards. In general, if we talk only about formaldehyde, it is a colorless gas that is formed as a result of imperfect combustion of fossilized fuel or waste. Prolonged inhalation of vapors of this substance can provoke not only general weakness and allergic reactions, but also much more serious health problems, up to the development of cancer. Severe formaldehyde poisoning can provoke changes even at the genetic level. 

Nitrogen dioxide is also a colorless gas that enters the air from automobile exhaust, which is the main source of air pollution in the city. Automobile emissions account for 80% of all air emissions. 

In addition, in the air of some districts of the city, there are elevated concentrations of suspended solids, carbon monoxide, phenol, and nitrogen oxide. These substances, in particular, have a negative impact on the respiratory tract and nervous system.