
I've been a bit quiet for the past few months, but things have been happening in the background. Just a few weeks ago we finally received a report WYG, a company working for the Council, with the results from months of data collecting. It’s very obviously very long and detailed, full of stats, figures, graphs. Obviously it cannot be taken as bible, since as we know measuring air pollution is a long and hard process but it does give us a good estimate on the effectiveness of all the measures we've been taking inside and outside the school. - The Airlite paint inside the dining hall, which according to our own reading brought down the levels of Nitrogen Dioxide by at least 76% and sometime as high as 89% , was confirmed to be just as effective as we thought by the independent readings from WYG. The air purifier in the reception class is doing wonders and according the WYG is the best measure when it comes to cleaning the air. Its effectiveness on PM2.5, PM10 and Nox is astonishing, with results around 85%-90% (if not higher) confirmed by their independent readings. Finally the green wall. WYG confirmed the fact that it's working! Data has been collected from tubes spread across the whole playground and proved that the air is actually cleaner. These results come with a caveat: they have been taken during summertime which is usually the most polluted time of the year, given the high temperatures, but also is the time when a lot of people are on holiday, so probably with slightly less traffic. Clearly in oder to have concrete data, readings need to be taken for a much longer period. However the conclusion that WYG reached it that there has been a considerable improvement is the air in and around the school, by 37%. The space is now constantly used by pupils from the school and the Community Centre and everyone seems to love the green wall. Conversation have also started about looking for events/markets and other things to host. More about this soon.