Find out how the quality of our air affects our health, enjoyment of life, tourism, and the environment.
On this page: When air is polluted, polluted air causes problems, air quality in the Waikato region, global effect
Air is made up of two main gases (nitrogen and oxygen), with small amounts of carbon dioxide and other gases.
Air can be contaminated by:
- solids - such as dust
- liquids - such as herbicide sprays
- gases - such as methane.
When air is polluted
Air is polluted when contaminants are in air for long enough, and at concentrations high enough, to affect humans, plants, animals, property, or amenity values (visibility and odour).
Contaminants come from many sources. Some are natural, such as geothermal emissions, but many are human-made. In the Waikato region, human-made emissions are mostly from:
Air pollution can happen on a:
- local scale - typically odour and dust
- regional scale - emissions from transport and large industries
- global scale - climate change and ozone depletion.
In the Waikato region the main contaminants of our air are fine particles (PM10), contained in contaminants such as smoke. We monitor local PM10 levels at a number of sites throughout the region, and you can see the graphs that show these local fine particle (PM10) levels on this website.
Polluted air causes problems
Air pollution can damage our health and reduce our enjoyment of life. It can affect our health by causing:
- burning eyes and nose
- irritated and scratchy throat
- respiratory symptoms - especially in sensitive people like asthmatics, children and the elderly
- cancer, birth defects, brain and nerve damage and long-term injury to the lungs and breathing passages.
Air pollution can also cause:
- haze - which reduces visibility
- dust - which deposits in our homes and on our cars
- odours - which are a nuisance, especially for people living close to the source.
Air contaminants that cause health effects in humans can also affect other living things. A few air contaminants are so dangerous that accidental releases can cause serious injury or death.
Air quality in the Waikato region
Many tourists visiting the Waikato region are attracted by our clean, green image. Poor visibility, odours, dust and other air pollution problems may damage our tourism industry.
Air quality in the Waikato region is generally good, but some areas are more prone to air pollution because of:
- localised point-source pollution from industry
- pollution from motor vehicle exhausts and domestic heating.
In most inland towns air pollution is a problem in the winter because the local climate is cold and calm with frequent inversion layers that trap air contaminants close to the ground.
We all contribute to air pollution and we are all affected by it.
Global effect
Some air contaminants have thinned the ozone layer above earth, and others are believed to be causing climate change. Find out more about how climate change and ozone depletion affect us.
More information