What Is Air Quality Monitoring?

By Author: Gareth Hoyle
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Air quality monitoring is more or less what it sounds like. In certain situations air needs to be completely clear of pollutants, gases or particulates. Air quality monitoring checks periodically for these things and alerts you if there are any problems.

There are many different types of monitoring available because there are a wide array of circumstances in which it is needed.

Who Needs Air Quality Monitoring?

The purity of the air in, for example, a factory that produces microchips is very important as is the air quality in certain kinds of scientific laboratories. You may need to monitor air quality in a warehouse, where pollution from lorries can endanger the health of workers.

Air quality monitoring is sometimes necessary in the construction industry. This is especially the case if a building containing potentially dangerous materials is being demolished. In these situations the building is curtained off for demolition and most of the dangerous dust stays within that area. However, the air in the immediate vicinity is usually monitored to ensure that members of the public are not exposed to harmful ...
... particulates.

Air Quality Monitoring to Solve Disputes

Air quality monitoring is being used more often to resolve disputes and to help certain industries to get planning permission. For example, if residents near a chemical plant claim that their washing is rotting on the line due to pollution from the chemical plant long term air quality monitoring can be set up to firmly establish whether or not there really is a problem. This kind of monitoring is important because it not only resolves disputes it measures the problem, which means the underlying problem can quickly be found and solved.

Occasionally air quality monitoring is made a part of planning permission. Usually this is to allay the fears of local residents who may, for example, object to the opening of a new quarry due to air pollution. Making constant air quality monitoring a condition of planning permission being granted is good for the company who desperately needs that planning permission as well as for the environment and local residents.