A new street-by-street map has revealed Dublin city's worst spots for air quality.
Dublin's quays and Temple Bar have the poorest air quality in the city, according to the study. The 16-month study carried out by Google and Dublin City Council, and the data gathered in the study was released to the public on Tuesday.
Google’s Project Air View initiative, run by Dublin City Council through its Smart Dublin programme, captured the data using Google’s Street View car. In the study, it was discovered that the quays from O'Connell Bridge up to Heuston Station were in the red zone as it had poor levels of air quality which came from high levels of nitrogen concentration on roads (between 45-50%).
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Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is created by the burning of fuels usually from cars and trucks. This pollutant is associated with respiratory problems, such as asthma attacks and reduced lung function.
Meanwhile, the Temple Bar area also saw elevated levels of nitrogen dioxide which was between 40-45%. Other areas with the same amount of carbon dioxide was parts of Phibsborough, Smithfield, the Liberties, and the Docklands.
However, there were several areas in the county that had very good air quality from between <10, and between 10 and 20. Areas with excellent air quality at <10 included Sandymount, Ranelagh, Glasnevin, Rialto, and Irishtown.
Other areas that had good air quality with long-term carbon dioxide levels of between 10 and 20% were Chapelizod, Ballyfermot, Dolphin's Barn and Bluebell. Lord of Mayor of Dublin, Caroline Conroy said, that the project captured over 50 million air quality measurements at 5 million locations across the city with the car covering over 30,000kms distance.
She said: "Project Air View is enabling new insights into air quality across the streets of Dublin. Having these local insights is just the beginning of the journey, we now need to explore the findings and use them to help improve the lives and health of Dubliners.”
Meanwhile a 3-day air quality data hackathon will take place in Google Ireland from the 24 to 26 February. Check how your area in Dublin fares by checking here on the interactive map below: Environmental Insights Explorer and on Smart Dublin’s open data platform.
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