Pollutionwatch: citizen science helps raise alarm on UK air pollution

Rising numbers of people are taking air pollution measurements to push authorities to take action

More and more people are making their own air pollution measurements and using these to press for action from national and local governments.

Last year Mark Tebbutt installed Chorley’s seventh air pollution monitor. Since 2013 Tebbutt, his family and friends have been buying and operating their own air pollution instruments. These are mounted on garden fences and on the sides of houses across the Lancashire town. You can find their data online alongside those from more than 30,000 citizen scientists around the world.