Air pollution is increasing worldwide, but keeping track of the severity of air pollution on a daily basis often requires expensive equipment.
Importance of low-cost air quality monitors in NCAP
Ugandan researchers have developed low-cost air-quality monitoring sensors that work in extreme conditions. The sensors could help Uganda and other countries switch from expensive imported monitors. It is part of a growing effort to develop a broader network of air-quality monitors.
“Many people in developing countries cannot afford even low-cost air quality monitors and thus cannot determine the air pollution levels in their neighborhoods,” Akshaya Jah, a professor of economics and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University, told Lifewire in an email interview. “Local policymakers in developing countries may not be able to deploy EPA quality monitors on a large scale, requiring less expensive air quality monitors with comparable levels of measurement accuracy.”
Scientists from Makerere University in Kampala designed and built the AirQo air quality monitoring project, which was partly funded by Google. The system uses a network of sensors, each costing $150, to collect air quality data around Kampala. Data from the monitors is processed by artificial intelligence and made available to the public via a smartphone app.
