Air quality in Havířov

Is Havirov a very polluted city currently?

Havířov is a city in the Karviná District, Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It is a very “young” city, only being founded after the Second World War. Primarily it was created as a coal-mining town. According to a census conducted in 2020, Havirov had an estimated population of about 70,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the region.

At the end of 2021, Havířov was experiencing a level of air quality classified as being “Moderate” with a US AQI reading of 76. This United States Air Quality Index number is calculated using the levels of six of the most commonly occurring air pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide and both sizes of particulate matter, which are PM2.5 and PM10. It can then be used as the metric when comparing air quality in other cities around the world. If data is unavailable for all 6 pollutants, a figure can still be calculated by using what figures there are. The only two pollutants measured in Havířov were PM2.5 and PM10 with respective levels of 24 µg/m³ and 23 µg/m³.

This level of PM2.5 is almost two and a half times the recommended safe level of 10 µg/m³ as suggested by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as being an acceptable level. Although no amount of air pollution is considered to be safe.

When the level of air pollution is in the “Moderate” bracket, the offered advice would be to remain indoors as much as possible and close all doors and windows to prevent more polluted air from entering. Those who are sensitive to poorer air quality are advised to limit their exposure outside to as little as possible. If this is unavoidable, then a good quality face mask should be worn at all times.

For up-to-date information about air quality, there is an app available from AirVisual.com which is downloadable for all mobile devices and informs you of the air quality in real-time.

Does the level of air pollution remain constant throughout the year in Havířov?

Air quality is very volatile as it is subject to many external influencing factors such as meteorological and atmospheric changes.

Looking back at the figures for 2020, released by IQAir.com, it can readily be seen that the air quality for the entire twelve months remained in the “Moderate” classification with readings between 12.1 and 35.4 µg/m³. The month with the cleanest air was July when the level was recorded as being 12.2 µg/m³. The poorest quality was during January when the level reached 30.4 µg/m³.

Records for air pollution were first held in 2017 when a figure of 26.7 µg/m³ was recorded. The following year saw a decline when that reading was 28.8 µg/m³, before a noticeable improvement in 2019 with a 20.3 µg/m³ record. In 2020, the level was 18.0 µg/m³, however, this reading may have been affected by the COVID-19 situation as many vehicles were no longer in daily use because the offices were closed, in an attempt to halt the spread of the virus. Many factories and non-essential production units were also required to close which removed their emissions from the atmosphere.

Where does the polluted air come from in Havířov?

Both anthropogenic (caused by human activities) and natural sources contribute to air pollution. The most important anthropogenic sources include local heating plants (especially solid fuel combustion), road transport, industry and energy and agriculture.

Emissions of the main pollutants entering the air in the city of Havířov are emissions of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, solid pollutants, carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds.

Another source of dust in Havířov's air is the smelter in neighbouring Ostrava whose emissions are wind-borne.

Mobile sources, i.e., car transport, have a large share in air pollution. The main road passes through the city centre. The residential blocks are also largely located within 20 metres from the roads.

What can be done to improve air quality in Havířov?

The current state of the air can be characterized by a decrease in sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide emissions and a stabilized, yet slightly increasing nitric oxide emissions, which due to car traffic have a large share in air pollution in Havířov.

Havířov is another town that participated in the Clairo project. The purpose of the project is to measure the concentrations of monitored substances in the air, which will be followed by planning and method of planting a suitable type of greenery with a positive impact on air quality. In addition to the transformation of the heating industry and the reduction of the frequency of traffic in the city, this is another phase of the so-called greening of the city.

A spokesman for the project said work is continuing to improve air quality in the city. The city's greenery is monitored and they are constantly planting new shrubs and trees. This will lead to the gradual decarbonisation of the mountainous landscape, the difficult transformation of the heating industry and the Havířov bypass, which should also relieve the environment.

What are the detrimental effects of breathing polluted air in Havířov?

Polluted air is harmful to human health and the environment. Emissions of many air pollutants in Europe have fallen significantly in recent decades, leading to improved air quality throughout the region. However, concentrations of air pollutants are still too high and air quality problems persist. A significant part of the European population, especially in cities, lives in areas where air quality standards are exceeded.

At present, three pollutants are generally considered to be the most significant in terms of impact on human health, namely fine airborne particles, nitrogen dioxide and ground-level ozone. Prolonged or maximum exposure to these pollutants can have various serious effects on human health, from respiratory damage to premature death. Approximately 90 per cent of the population of European cities is exposed to pollutants in concentrations higher than air quality levels, which are considered harmful to health.

Exposure to high concentrations of ozone causes damage to crops. Most agricultural crops are exposed to ozone levels that exceed the EU's long-term plant protection target. This mainly concerns a large part of agricultural land, especially in southern, central and eastern Europe.