Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 July 2022
225. Deputy Jennifer Whitmore asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the number of air quality monitoring stations currently in place; if the final expansion of the network will be completed in 2022; when it is expected that the number of official air quality stations will increase to 110 and be fully operational; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39482/22]
View answerThe national Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Programme is operated, maintained and monitored by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). However, my Department has provided funding for a significant upgrade to the network in recent years and, as a result, the number of monitoring stations has increased from 29 in 2017 to 102 today. All stations collect air quality data for a range of pollutants in order to provide information to the public, and for assessment against European legal limit values and World Health Organisation guideline values. Details of the locations of all monitoring stations currently in operation, along with real-time and historic data from each station, can be found at the EPA-operated website, www.airquality.ie. The final expansion of the network is expected to be completed by the end of this year and will increase the number of official stations to 116.
