Media Center

The website for the air quality in Cyprus is a dynamic one and can accept constant improvements. The main goal is to ensure that the pages can easily be used and be of great interest to the media. Therefore, we are very positive to suggestions for the content and the functionality of these webpages.

Photo illustrations, drawings and published text are copyrighted and cannot be broadcasted or reproduced for distribution without clearance or permission from the copyright holder.

For more clarifications on the content of the website, please contact the officers at the Department of Labour Inspection, Air Quality and Strategic Planning Section.

For more information please check the monthly and annual reports that concern the quality of atmospheric air in Cyprus.

 

The Air Quality Monitoring Network in Cyprus was established in 2006 with the aim to protect and inform the public regarding the air quality in Cyprus. Today, the network is comprised of  nine (9) stations. This network is operated according to the Cyprus and the European Legislation. The stations of the network are equipped with modern instruments based on the standards of the corresponding European networks.

For the better management of the network and the presentation of the air quality situation in Cyprus, these stations are categorized, based on the air quality legislation in relation to the measurement area as:

  • Traffic Stations which are stations representative for areas with high traffic (Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaka, Pafos, Paralimni)
  • Residential Stations which are stations representative for residential areas (Nicosia)
  • Industrial Stations which are stations representative for industrial areas (Zygi, Mari)
  • Background Stations which are stations representative for background areas (Ayia Marina Xyliatou)

These monitoring stations have the ability to obtain measurements from different pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides (NO, NO2, NOx), ozone (O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), carbon monoxide (CO), particulate matter (PM2.5, PM10) and benzene (C6H6). Furthermore, the most important meteorological parameters are being monitored, such as wind direction (W/D), wind speed (W/S), ambient temperature (T), relative humidity (R/H), barometric pressure (B/P) and solar radiation (S/R), by using automatic instruments for continuous measurements.

Traffic Stations

Stations that have been installed in areas with increased traffic are considered representative for a street segment greater than 100 m length, have been placed in a distance greater than 25 m from a major traffic junction and in a distance less than 10 m from the kerbside.

Residential Stations

Stations for the monitoring of the air quality in residential areas have been located in such a way that the measured pollutants concentrations represent the aggregate of the atmospheric pollution sources which influence the area of the station.

Background Stations

The sites for the stations monitoring the background concentrations have been chosen in such a way to be uninfluenced by industrial or human sources. Each station is sited in a distance greater than 20 km from known pollution sources and greater than 5 km from built-up and industrial areas, motorways or major roads with traffic counts of more than 50000 vehicles per day. The measurements of these stations are representative of transboundary air pollution in Cyprus from other countries and represent the background measurements which should be taken into consideration for the protection of the vegetation and ecosystems.

Industrial Stations

These stations are representative stations for the pollutant concentrations which come from industrial sources and are sited in the heavy industrial area of Zygi – Vasilikos. The greatest industrial installations of the country are sited in this area, such as the Vasilikos electric power station and the Vasilikos cement factory.

 

A/A

Name

Location

Coordinates

1

Nicosia_TRA

Strovolos police station, Nicosia

35 09’ 07’’ N

33 20’ 52’’ E

2

Nicosia_RES

Apostolos Loukas Elementary School, Strovolos, Nicosia

35 07’ 37’’ N

33 19’ 54’’ E

3

Limassol_TRA

Archiepiskopou Makariou III Avenue, Limassol

34 41’ 10’’ N

33 02’ 08’’ E

4

Larnaca_TRA

Louki Pieridi Street (Public Garden), Larnaca

34 54’ 60’’ N

33 37’ 39’’ E

5

Pafos_TRA

Eleftheriou Venizelou (Parking area of Municipal Swimming Pool), Pafos

34 46’ 54’’ N

32 26’ 12’’ E

6

Zygi_IND

Zygi Police station, Larnaca

34 43’ 57’’ N

33 20’ 5.26’’ E

7

Ayia Marina - EMEP

Ayia Marina Xyliatou, Nicosia

35 02’ 17’’ N

33 03’ 28’’ E

8

Mari_IND

Mari, Larnaca

34 44’ 21’’ N

33 17’ 56’’ E

9

Paralimni_TRA

1st Apriliou Avenue, Paralimni

35 02’ 45’’ N

33 58’ 40’’ E

End of name explanation for the stations  

TRA = Traffic Representative Station

RES = Residential Representative Station

IND = Industrial Representative Station

EMEP = Background Representative Station

Station locations are also made available via a kml file, appropriate for use with Google Earth or Marble.

 
 

Educational activities

The Air Quality and Strategic Planning Section, supports educational activities of Cyprus schools, by providing information and material on the air quality of the country, the air pollution monitoring network and  other specialized information. If you are an educator - environmental education program manager, you can contact the responsible officers.

 
Educational material

1. Elements of the air quality monitoring network in Cyprus. Here you can download a file for Google Earth.

2. Air quality slides including indicative training exercises for high school students. (Currently only in Greek)

 
Examples

You can send us any project done by students of your school in order to post them on our site!