For a long time, construction was overlooked as an air pollution problem by both government and scientists. And then in July 1999 the signal from new equipment at London’s Marylebone Road field laboratory suddenly leapt to more than 10 times its normal value. My team went out to investigate. Larger polluting particles, called PM10, were the main problem and a nearby building refurbishment was the culprit.
Since then, scientists at Imperial College London have tracked pollution from a whole range of building works, including demolition, construction and street repairs. We also made a three-year study of a road-widening scheme in south-east London and found that residents suffered increased air pollution as the new road was built. This was followed by yet more traffic pollution when the road opened.
