In Brussels, as elsewhere, there are two main families of air pollutants: gases and fine particles. The most talked about gas, which is very present in the city, is nitrogen dioxide.
Nitrogen dioxide
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a gas that belongs to the nitrogen oxides (NOx) family. Concentrated, it is brown-red in color and has a characteristic pungent and pungent smell. Nitrogen dioxide comes mainly from human activities, more specifically from high-temperature processes. This is the case, for example, when a vehicle burns its fuel in its combustion engine, but also when fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas or biomass (wood) are burned to produce electricity or heating.
Unfortunately, NO2 concentrations in Brussels are too high, which endangers the health of Brussels residents, especially children. This is the main conclusion of our measurement campaign #LesChercheursDair This showed, among other things, that the WHO NO2 recommendation is exceeded in all schools where measurements have been made. Some schools are exposed to NO2 concentrations that exceed the WHO recommendation by more than 3 times.
Source
researchersdair.be