EU-funded mobile app for real-time tracking of air quality launched in Ukraine's central Dnipro region
Ukrainian NGO "Stop Poisoning Kryvyi Rih" has launched a real-time mobile app that reports on the region's air quality. The city is considered one of the most air-polluted in Ukraine due to the high presence of industrial facilities and mines.
The program is based on EcoCity public air quality monitoring system station data. Now, the application works for the whole Dnipropetrovsk region.
What is the solution?
Industrialized areas in Ukraine are poorly cared for in terms of ecology safety. Citizens consume polluted air; however, do not suspect the degree of its contamination.
The "Breathe, Dnipro" mobile app provides real-time information about air quality, not after the first data analysis. The program alarms about the level of air pollution in the user's chosen location. The program also sends audible notifications to the user about air pollution and tells tips to protect users from further damage to their health.
We have to know what is going on with the air quality and detect a threat. The app's information is data from monitoring stations located in our region. This is information online, here and now, said Olena Shafranova, lawyer of initiative.
How does it work?
The app has a simple interface and does not require sign-up. Users must download the application, find the nearest weather station, or select it manually on the map and receive information about air pollution and certain tips.
A simple color scale indicates air quality levels. The app explains each color and level and its meaning. Depending on the air's state, behavior tips are designed for the average healthy adult, as well as for people with chronic diseases, pregnant women, the elderly, and children.
Air quality levels are fully consistent with the strategy of Ukraine's Health Ministry's program. During the app's development, the activists analyzed the best practices for informing about air quality and communication with the population.
This initiative is aimed at the transparency of environmental information available to everyone. The WHO says to preserve public health, all data on air pollution should be available to people.
The app assists in finding out the air quality and adjusts the user's plan, as well as prevents panic attitude during the war, as Russians frequently report fake messages about radiation increase.
Transparency on the state of the environment is one of the requirements of European environmental legislation. International health organizations, including the WHO, consider such information and recommendations for the public to be an important component of improving public health and preventing chronic diseases. The EU is pleased to help communities develop environmental initiatives and tools that will help protect people, said Olha Simak, Environment Sector Coordinator at the EU Delegation to Ukraine.
