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- Senior official Chrysanthos Savvides said authorities in serious incidents need not wait for measurements before evacuating or protecting the public.
- Cyprus operates nine permanent air quality monitoring stations, which exceed European directive requirements, but they are not designed for every emergency.
- Savvides said children, older people and those with respiratory or other health problems are especially vulnerable to air pollution from fires.
- The WHO warns wildfire smoke can travel thousands of kilometres and recommends limiting outdoor activity during heavy smoke or high pollution.
Wildfire smoke can affect air quality even in areas far from the site of a fire, depending mainly on wind speed and direction, a senior Cyprus Labour Inspection Department official told the Cyprus News Agency on Wednesday.
Chrysanthos Savvides, Senior Labour Inspection Officer and head of the Air Quality and Support Branch, said that in serious incidents, authorities do not need to wait for measurements before taking measures to protect the public.
A fire, he explained, inevitably alters air quality by releasing substances into the atmosphere that are not present in clean air.
The extent to which the atmosphere is affected, and how far pollutants travel, depends largely on weather conditions. Strong winds can carry pollutants over considerable distances, while concentrations gradually decrease as the pollutants disperse.
Pollutants depend on what is burning
Savvides said the danger posed by pollutants depends on their concentration, while the type of pollutants released depends on the material being burned.
His advice is for people to move away from the source of a fire and allow the relevant authorities to carry out their work.
Children, older people and those with health problems are particularly vulnerable to air pollution, especially people with respiratory conditions or other underlying health issues.
Nine permanent air quality monitoring stations
Cyprus currently operates nine permanent air quality monitoring stations, according to Savvides, which is more than required under the relevant European directive.
He explained that the stations are designed to systematically monitor air quality under normal conditions and are not intended to cover every emergency incident, as it would be impractical to have monitoring stations at every location.
Measurements from permanent stations can vary during fires depending on weather conditions.
For emergency monitoring, a request is usually submitted by a competent authority, such as the Fire Service, Civil Defence or a local authority.
Savvides cited a previous factory fire in Dali as an example, when a temporary monitoring station was deployed to track the development of pollution.
Authorities can act before measurements
In serious incidents, authorities can immediately evacuate or move people away from an affected area without waiting for measurements, Savvides said, as smoke is known to worsen air quality.
Measurements are particularly useful afterwards to determine whether pollutants remain in the atmosphere, how concentrations are declining and when air quality can be considered to have returned to normal.
Savvides also warned that under certain conditions, pollutants can be carried by rain into ecosystems, crops, rivers, springs or dams and potentially enter the food chain.
For this reason, a serious incident should be assessed comprehensively and, where necessary, water quality and agricultural products should also be tested.
WHO warns of health risks
The World Health Organization has warned that wildfire smoke can travel thousands of kilometres, affecting air quality and human health far from the fire zone.
In guidance published on July 31, the WHO said around 90% of the total mass of particles emitted by fires consists of particles measuring up to 2.5 micrometres in diameter (PM2.5).
Smoke can also contain PM10, ultrafine particles, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide and toxic metals.
Exposure can cause headaches, eye and respiratory irritation, coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and chest pain.
Children, older people, pregnant women and those with chronic lung or heart conditions are considered particularly vulnerable.
When there is heavy smoke or elevated air pollution, the WHO recommends limiting outdoor activities and, where possible, staying indoors with windows and doors closed.
If going outdoors is necessary, it recommends using a properly fitted FFP2 or N95 mask.
Source: CNA
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