Air quality in Sosnowiec

What is the current level of air pollution in Sosnowiec?

Sosnowiec is an industrial city county in the Dąbrowa Basin of southern Poland. It is located in the eastern part of the Upper Silesian Industrial Region, in the Silesian Voivodeship. According to a census conducted in 2020, Sosnowiec had a city population of approximately 200,000 residents. This increased to over 4.5 million when the entire metropolitan area was taken into consideration.

At the beginning of 2020, Sosnowiec was enjoying a period of “Good” quality air with a US AQI reading of 50. This United States Air Quality Index number is an internationally used set of metrics supported by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and is used to compare the air quality in different cities throughout the world using comparable standards. It is calculated by using the levels of the six most commonly found pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide and both sizes of particulate matter, which are PM2.5 and PM10. All six figures are not always available in which case, a level is calculated by using what data there is. Both sizes of PM were measured here; PM2.5 - 12 µg/m³ and PM10 - 17.1 µg/m³.

This level of PM2.5 is just over the recommended safe level of 10 µg/m³ as suggested by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as being an acceptable level. Although no amount of air pollution is considered to be safe.

When air quality is relatively “Good” doors and windows can be safely opened to allow a stream of fresh air to enter the rooms. All types of outdoor activity can be freely enjoyed without fear of pollution. There is a downloadable app from AirVisual.com which is suitable for all operating systems and gives the latest information regarding air quality in real-time.

Does the level of air pollution change much throughout the year in Sosnowiec?

Air quality is very volatile as it can be affected by many things. Looking back at the figures for 2020 published by IQAir.com it can easily be seen that the two months of June and July provided the cleanest air with figures between 10.1 and 12 µg/m³. The remaining ten months saw air quality from the “Moderate” category with figures between 12.1 and 35.4 µg/m³. The dirtiest month was January with a figure of 28.9 µg/m³.

There were no records pertaining to air quality before 2020 when the figure published in that year was 17.3 µg/m³. This low figure was almost to be expected because it would have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic as many vehicles were no longer in daily use because the offices were closed and the staff encouraged to work from home, in an attempt to halt the spread of the virus. Many factories and non-essential production units were also required to close which removed their emissions from the atmosphere, albeit on a temporary basis. Worldwide, cities reported a much better quality of air due to the general lack of traffic pollution in city centres due to the pandemic.

Is there a main source of air pollution in Sosnowiec?

Sosnowiec became an industrial power in the 1970s. After the political transformation, many of the unprofitable plants were closed and the profile of the city's economy changed. Today it is a modern centre, a centre for business, modern technology and services.

Smog is created by mixing air with exhaust fumes in windless weather and high humidity. The most exposed to it are cities and towns situated in natural depressions of the ground. The phenomenon arises as a result of temperature inversion - that is, the layer of cooler air below it is stopped by the layer of warm air above it. This happens most often during the weather boom.

Smog is composed of harmful chemicals such as suspended dust, hydroxides, nitrogen and sulphur oxides. The most dangerous substances include suspended dust (PM10 and PM2.5), benzo (a) pyrene and nitrogen oxides. The source of these substances is human activity, and the main cause of air pollution with these substances is the so-called low emissions.

What can be done to improve the air quality in Sosnowiec?

The authorities of Sosnowiec recognised the reduction of low emissions as one of the key elements of the pro-ecological policy. Much attention was paid to suspended dust and coal stoves. This was to persuade residents to change their harmful habits and stop burning rubbish.

The commune is trying to optimize road traffic conditions on an ongoing basis using the existing road infrastructure, the modernisation of traffic lights and thoughtful management of the existing resources significantly contributed to the reduction of traffic jams, and the emission of pollutants. In order to avoid re-emission, a lot of emphasis is also placed on keeping the pavement in good condition. Currently, an investment is underway consisting in the modernisation of the track of the tram line connecting Sosnowiec with the city of Katowice. The tram connection is to become a communication alternative for residents working in the centre of the voivodeship who use the DK 94 national road that is heavily loaded with traffic.

What are the detrimental effects of breathing in polluted air?

Breathing polluted air is a straightforward pathway to worsening symptoms of asthma, obstructive pulmonary disease, and respiratory infections, and to increasing the incidence of these diseases. Particulate matter is to blame, but also ozone, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide and carcinogenic substances from the PAH group.

Studies have shown that the long-term effects of smog include chronic coughing, lung failure, and chronic bronchitis, among others. Unfortunately, there are even situations in which non-smokers suffer from lung cancer - polluted air may resemble the composition of cigarette smoke (both contain carcinogenic benzo (a) pyrene). When it comes to the short-term effects of air pollution, they include the weakening of the body or falling ill with respiratory diseases. Unfortunately, common pneumonia in seniors can even be fatal.

The effects of air pollutants vary with exposure time, age, health, weather conditions and the composition of the polluted air. Every person is exposed to smog. However, the higher risk group includes:

• people with respiratory diseases and asthma,
• pregnant women (risk of foetal death or early delivery),
• children whose organs are not fully developed and often spend more time outdoors in poor conditions,
• the elderly,
• allergy sufferers,
• residents of the area with traffic of over 10,000 vehicles a day.