Revised PM₁₀ Air Quality Index for Reference Equivalent Data

News published: 04/08/2009

In the UK over the last two years and more, there has been a steady replacement of old TEOM PM₁₀ monitors with reference equivalent instruments. This has happened both in the national monitoring networks for European Directive compliance, and at the regional and local level for local air quality management purposes.

The current PM₁₀ air quality index for reporting real-time public information from TEOM monitors is not directly transferable to other reference equivalent monitors and therefore requires updating. The results of the PM₁₀ equivalence programme (carried out between November 2004 and January 2006) have been analysed to develop an equation relating old TEOM data to reference equivalent monitors as follows:

Reference equivalent PM₁₀ = TEOM x 1.3 - 2.2494

On this basis the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP) have agreed the air quality index for PM₁₀ and breakpoints for "Low", "Moderate", "High" or "Very High" pollution can be assigned to old TEOMs or reference equivalent data. For further details of the background to this and proposed changes please see the attached short paper here

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