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iPollution
Idea
We extract the yearly mean values of the air pollution in Switzerland from the graphical maps on the BAFU website and present them to a user based on his location: A user should see the cumulative effect of being exposed to pollutants over years. We choose placative statistics, like the amount of particulate matter (PM10, Feinstaub) or the time one spends over the hourly limits of ozone.
The interpolated data for all Switzerland is not available in any other format. Although there is a lot of air pollution measurements downloadable, they are locally restricted to the measurement stations. The model behind the interpolation is rather complex and also not public.
As a consequence, the project takes an unusual approach: it actually extracts the data from maps, i.e. from pictures and re-maps the information to geocodes.
Data
databases currently used in the project
- Geocoded ZIP codes, File:
CSV (Excel) LV03
databases that could eventually be used in the project
Although there are only a handful of air pollution measuring stations, detailed pollution maps can be calculated; this is done by creating an elaborated model that considers density factories, traffic and much more to calculate the local air pollution. The model data is not publicly available and the only way to get the local data is therefore to parse the published pictures. More information on the modeling is available from the BAFU webpage
Technology/Services
Team
- Nicolai Kilian