Quality standards of the air

General remark: the term standards is used in this article in the direction of regulations .

These standards refer primarily only to one chemical pollution, other than certain physical parameters " of confort" (temperature, moisture, pressure, etc).

It is necessary to distinguish the various fields to which apply the standards of the Quality of the Air :

interior air (public or private)
air of the work place (cf: Occupational hygiene/Air)
the external ambient air (it is the public air which each one breathes and the " new law on the air " in France, (Law on the Air of December 30th, 1996), " imposes; that this air does not harm the public health ". One will speak here about Immission .
air with the emission of certain rejections , indicated by name:

emissions of the " industriels" and other fixed transmitters (pollutants really or potentially),
automobile emissions and other mobile transmitters.

Public or private interior air

the public interior air is relatively little regulated

Out the regulation more or less applied in France to the Tabagisme active or passive (Loi Évin), there do not exist particular standards, even if it is implicit that this air should not harm the public health.

private interior air : Of course it is private field, therefore free and no standard applies to it.

One will however take care to be attentive with his quality, if a healthy air is wished, because with the analysis, it on average appears charged, more harmful than the ambient surrounding air; various studies indicate the presence of very many pollutants according to the lifestyle, and the parts concerned:

kitchen: oxides of nitrogen (if burners with gas), Unburnt , HAP, even of the Acrolein, etc
the workshop of do-it-yourself (of the Solvent S, Pickling solution S, Adhesive S (COV), smoke, dust, etc
carpets, fitteds carpet: dust, Acarina, etc
wood, floor coverings and other materials impregnated: lasures, solvents, paintings, Formaldehyde, etc
Certain plants: odors, Allergen S

Air of the work place (or Occupational hygiene)

To refer to the article: Occupational hygiene/Air

The Ambient air external (public air)

The odorous stenches and harmful effects are announced by the chroniclers since centuries, and they are sometimes regarded as source of disease. In December 1915, the Bulletin of Lille recalls the inhabitants in a paragraph entitled Propreté and safety of the public highway , “that they must, neither to shake, neither to beat the carpets on the public highway, nor to throw anything by the window, even clean water (Article 617 of the code of the local by-laws). This prohibition also applies to the fact of shaking rags by the windows, because one should not, in any way, to soil the air by domestic dust. Any infringement gives place to continuations in front of the Police court and to the application of the sorrows envisaged by the law ”.
With the passing of years, the quality of the external ambient air saw its standards, its regulations to become increasingly complete and increasingly severe. A certain European standardization, even world in certain cases is also established.

The description, even brief of the evolution metrological, normative, geographical and historical would be long and tiresome.

One will be satisfied to briefly describe some major accidents related to atmospheric pollution, while referring to the " Pollution of London " and with the " Pollution of the valley of the Meuse ".

Even the description of the " standards of pollution européenne" current is very complex, and particularly evolutionary.

A synthetic summary is indicated below:

According to the European directives in force, are currently regulated, in the ambient surrounding air, the following pollutants:

SO2 or Sulfur dioxide (value limits for the protection of the human health: Centile 99,7 of average the schedules of the calendar year: 350 μg/m ³; centile 99,2 of the average day laborers of the calendar year: 125 μg/m ³; Value limits for the protection of the ecosystems: 20 μg on average annual and 20 μg/m ³ on average over the winter). SO_2> is very irritating and toxic, it comes mainly from fossil combustions.

PS 10 (value limits for the protection of health: centile 90,4: 50 μg/m ³ of the average day laborers of the calendar year; Annual average: 40 μg/m ³). The diameter of the suspended particles is very important: these are especially those whose diameter is lower than 10 microns, enabling them to penetrate deeply in the tracts respiratory, and charged with toxic compounds which are important.

NO2 or Dioxide nitrogen (value limits for the protection of the human health: centile 98 of average the schedules of the calendar year: 240 μg/m ³, in 2006; Annual average: 48 μg/m ³, in 2006; Value limits for the protection of the vegetation (in zone distant from dwelling, industry or highway: 30 μg/m ³ out of Nox, with Nox = NO + NO₂, these two pollutants being expressed in NO₂). It also comes from fossil combustions and deteriorates the respiratory functions.

O3 or Ozone (value limits for the protection of the human health: daily maximum of the average slipping over 8 a.m.: 120 μg/m ³; Value limits for the protection of the vegetation (AOT 40), calculated starting from time median values measured from May to July: 18.000 (μg/m ³) .h (average calculated over 5 years). Ozone is formed, under the action of the light, to leave known SO₂ and NO₂ and causes the same effects.

CO or Carbon monoxide (value limits for the protection of the human health: 10 mg/m ³ for the daily maximum of the average over 8 a.m.).

Benzène (value limits for the protection of the human health: 9 μg/m ³ in 2006).
Heavy metals (Cd, Nor, Ace, Pb, Hg).

Cadmium: Target value: 5 ng/m ³, on average of the calendar year of the total contents of the fraction PS 10

Nickel: Target value: 20 ng/m ³ " "

Arsenic: Target value: 6 ng/m ³ " "

Lead: Limiting value: 0,9 μg/m ³, in 2006, " "

HAP (Benzo (A) pyrene)

Benzo (A) pyrene: 1 ng/m ³, on average of the calendar year of the total contents of fraction PM10

The Métrologie of the ambient air is in general sophisticated and very specific, but curiously omits the follow-up of the oxygen rate.

The general normative approach has various aims of various natures:

Qualitative aim
value limits as regards protection of the human health, protection of the Végétation and protection of the ecosystem S: to see the article: Value of exposure.
threshold of alarm

The periods of time considered vary according to the pollutant concerned and from the had aim; one will find as follows:

Calendar year (from January 1st to December 31st)
Winter (from October 1st to March 31st)
be (from April 1st to September 30th)
the day
the hour

and the way of calculating will be according to the cases:

Average (annual, day laborer)
Average slipping (on 8:00)
maximum day laborer of the slipping average
Median
Percentile S (ex: Percentile 98 noted P98)

There also exists on the level of the departments, a regulation imposed using an officially applicable document: the Order of the prefect (or AP).

Currently, in general, only three pollutants are regulated via the AP:

NO₂ = nitrogen dioxide
SO₂ = sulfur dioxide
O₃ = ozone

with two types of levels of pollution:

Only the second threshold involves obligatorily measurements of abatement of pollution, that only the Préfet with the authority to impose (by AP). These measurements can concern, with various possible graduations, according to the gravity of the episode of pollution concerned, of the reductions or stop of the emissions of the large industrial transmitters responsible for pollution in progress (ex: deceleration of the production, Combustible change of , a such Fuel sulfur than the preceding fuel, even a stop of the production), and for automobile transport (of the decelerations the maximum speed authorized on such axis of circulation, or alternate Circulation measures it, according to the number of the number plate of the vehicle).

All these measurements having for objective to slow down or prevent a particular episode of pollution.

Case of an industrial pollution of SO₂, or of a pollution related to the automobile traffic of NO₂ type, etc

Air of the emissions (or of the rejections)

The regulation of the emissions relates to primarily the large rejections of the industrialists (transmitting realities or potentials), and those related to the traffic (automobile, heavy trucks, planes, etc); in these two cases, " standards of rejets" are regulated by regulations concerning the maximum concentrations of certain specific pollutants, on the level of their rejections.

Atmospheric assessment of 4 large capitals

Paris: in progress

In the French capital, Airparif recorded a fall of atmospheric pollution between 2002 and 2007. Technological improvement of the vehicles and policy of displacements contributed to a reduction of 32% of the emissions of oxide of nitrogen and of 9% of those of gas with greenhouse effect, that is to say 469 T of CO₂ in less rejected each day by the traffic.

Mexico City: altitude in question

Brood in the crater of an old volcano to 2240 m, Mexico City was, in 1992, the most polluted city world, and she always pains to improve her air in spite of periodic prohibition of use of the private cars. At this altitude, the oxygen rate in air prevents the complete combustion of the fuel and involves stronger emissions of Carbon monoxide (CO).

Beijing: stake of the OJ

At one year of the next Olympic Games, Beijing would like to become clean. Since 2005, a network inspection of the air was set up. In fact, between 2000 and 2005, the emission of Sulfur dioxide (SO2) increased by 27% because of the use of coal to manufacture electricity. And the car fleet explodes with 1 000 new registrations delivered per day.

Delhi: bad point

The Indian megalopolis has the appearance of a bad pupil. With a rate of fine particles of 543 micrograms per cubic meter (the threshold fixed by WHO is of 75), it took the head of the classification of the most polluted cities Asia. A dramatic consequence: air pollution is responsible for a death every hour, that is to say 9 000 deaths each year.

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