Air Quality at different universities

[MyNameIsMaria]

Is there a website that will show you the relative air quality at different universities? It's just something that's been on my mind. I was wondering how much worse the air quality is for London unis compared to a more "green" campus uni like Nottingham or Bristol.

I'm just purely curious

It won't differ from the city around it. You can check the cities on websites like https://www.iqair.com/gb/world-air-quality

You can use Windy.com to pull up "live" pollution data, most of UK has its issues with NO2 SO2

London is significantly worse for NO2. If you want clean air the Aberdeen is one good spot, Exeter Falmouth would be another.

FWIW I was at Manchester Uni many years ago, there was a pollution map from the 1800s in one of the departments, it showed Manchester was the most polluted place on earth back then

Not really right. Relative of mine did her PhD on air quality and had numerous people with air quality monitors at their houses (inc me) and studied the data over a number of months. The data from one end of my village to the other eras quite different with me being on the main road and another monitor being on a side street. I can imagine at York for example the air quality on campus would be very different from the city centre.

Not all unis are in cities so there will be differences in places like York and Lancaster which are well outside the city centres.

That's why I ask for like campus universities that have a lot of green space, does the greenery improve the air quality

Just to point out that Bristol isn't a campus uni, it's in the city.

Having had children at university in Nottingham, Bristol and London (KCL) I can unscientifically confirm that they are in this order from lowest to highest pollution.
Nottingham
Bristol
London

The east end of most cities is generally worse than the west due to the prevailing wind. This is generally reflected in house prices - with student accommodation in cheaper areas with poorer air quality.

I think it's mostly proximity to traffic. As @CerealPosterHere said, studies using air quality monitors in a single area will show different levels of air pollution on different roads.

So a campus university is likely to be lower than probably any university in London.

Interesting question about greenery. A couple of locations (eg primary school) in my area have planted trees near the road, supposedly to improve air quality but I haven't seen any explanation of how that happens, especially during the winter months when the trees are leaf-less.

When I visited Lancaster with DC we were surprised by the constant traffic noise; it's a lovely green campus, right next to the M6!

I was just wondering if the trees manage to improve air quality in the same way they sequester carbon

In theory trees and green space will help but it depends on unit of measure and other factors such as location of airport, traffic, industrial emissions, prevalent wind direction. Not all areas monitor to same extent so data may not be comparable. UCL produce data as part of their research for example.

Yes greenery does greatly improve air quality

This is one of the most useful posts I have seen in the education board of Mumsnet. Something no-one has mentioned (that I can remember anyway)
Someone should maybe start a thread re little known things about universities that might surprise you 😁

If you're in a city your accomodation might not be near where lectures or teaching happens. If you go to a London uni you could commute in from a leafy green suburb!

Not all unis are in cities so there will be differences in places like York and Lancaster which are well outside the city centres.

Lancaster is right next to the M6, though. Furness & Fylde residences are only about 100 metres from the carriageway, although there are trees between the road and the campus.

Keele is next to the M6, too, but it's a bit further away from the motorway than Lancaster is.

Lancaster Uni might be next to the M6, but is is west of the road (ie upwind) and close to the coast.

The road noise can be noticeable sometimes but the air quality on campus seems decent. Also, much of the campus heads downhill away from the motorway, so most of the sports spaces and green spaces are very pleasant

Birmingham is surprisingly green and the city centre is mostly pedestrianised. Also low emission due to high charges for older cars very heavily enforced. I think it's about £8 per day.

Also Warwick is a nice green campus.

I know some people find it like a concrete jungle

I went to Warwick and loved my time there, a lovely green campus.

What did you study if you don't mind me asking

Although it's misleading.

The back of the enormous, very green, wooded campus does back onto the M6 yes. However for most of the year you can't hear any noise at all from the motorway. It's only when all of the trees have lost their leaves and the vegetation has died right back (and there was work done recently which meant that some of the shrubbery had to be cut back). For most of the year you can't hear anything at all. Plus for 90 percent of the campus you can't hear anything in the winter either.

I agree that currently if you do the woodland walk around campus you do get some traffic noise at the very back due to the shrubbery removal.

If you go and sit on the other side of campus in the gardens of the architecture building you can look out across the fields to the sea and listen to the birds.

What are you thinking of studying, OP?

I'm not. I'm just curious if a green campus uni has measurable air quality benefits