Air Quality - Paphos

[blueskies209]

Hi All,

Regular reader and webcam viewer and first time poster. Thanks Dominic and others who manage the website.

We plan to move here permanently and have been here for the last few weeks. We noticed this trip that on and off (sometimes a few hours and sometimes whole days) the air quality is really bad. We have Air Quality Cyprus and Air Visual apps. Fom Googling we found that there were about 70+ air quality alerts in one of the recent years. Not sure if that was for whole day or few hours.

Is this an unusual month with respect to air quality or is it always like this? Is it better during the summer months? Is it better at a higher elevation or on the Polis side? One of us is asthmatic and the other is sensitive to allergies. We plan to get air purifier but we are trying to understand how many days of the year we might need to spend indoors. We also notice a lot of fluffy black dust indoors settling on furniture and floor. Is this common?

Thanks!

[cyprusmax47]

You can follow up the last 6 month at this link....

https://www.airquality.dli.mlsi.gov.cy/graphs

Max

[Paul]

Just came back from Paphos and there is a lot of dirt in the air today!

You can see it over the hills and off the coast.
Paul

[WHL]

Same in the East

[Devil]

Unfortunately, there are a lot of misconceptions regarding air quality and visibility. For illustration, let me cite a great exaggeration; if you have a kettle of boiling water, the steam coming out of the spout is invisible for the 1st mm or so and then it becomes visible. This is because it cools down and condenses into minute droplets which refract the light. Similarly, visibility may not have anything to do with pollution – but it may! But we also have to define what pollution is and what it isn't. I repeat, visibility and pollution are not necessarily related but they may be. If visible pollution is due to water vapour, without any particulate matter, then it's harmless. On the other hand, it may or may not be harmful with particulate matter (often known as dust). But the degree of "harmfulness" will depend on a) the nature of the dust and b) the particle size of the dust. Taking the latter, if the particle size is very small (<1 µm) then it can be breathed in straight to the lungs. At 2.5 µm, it is more likely to cause bronchitis or tracheitis than more severe diseases. At 10 µm or more, most of the dust is caught in the nasal passages and is less likely to cause discomfort or worse, other than the desire to blow one's nose. Note that I have used the word "dust" liberally but the film that settles on a polished surface is much coarser than the dust mentioned here causing physiological effects.

Most of the charts that show dust levels specify either 2.5 µm or 10 µm, rarely the very harmful 1 µm dust.

[blueskies209]

Thanks all for your replies.

From the link Max provided and other reports on that site it looks like in general the air quality with respect to particulate matter at least is better during May - Aug and can vary and go down often during Sep - Apr depending on the year. The number of dust alerts mentioned on that site isn't as many but it seems like roughly 70 days in a year air quality can be bad in Paphos for an asthmatic. If anyone knows a site with CSV export please let us know.

And it doesn't look like where you are (Paphos or Larnaca) makes any difference. Can anyone from Polis area confirm the same please? Is it better up the hills as the sky looks more blue - I know Devil mentioned they aren't linked but just checking

We been here a few times before at this time of year and in summer and haven't experienced dust like this and somehow didn't think of researching it before i.e., buying a place.

Are there any asthmatics that have been living here for a while? I guess it depends on the individual but does it restrict you to living indoors 20% of the days especially when the temperature is a bit more mild? Does it badly affect your asthma?

Thanks!

[wantoosoon]

Is it desert dust from the Middle East or North Africa that causes the poor air quality? I used to live in Hong Kong and the particulates there were from vehicles/power stations/heavy industry. Most days there actually looked a bit like Paphos today - grey, murky and unwelcoming. Overall, of course, the two can't really be compared. Hong Kong has poisonous air.

What I've never understood is the instruction to stay indoors when particulate levels are high. Surely indoor air is as bad as outdoor air? It's not like it comes from a different source. Or do stiller conditions indoors mean that particulates settle out and are less likely to be inhaled?

[jeba]

There are "pollenscreens" available (https://www.warema.com/en/insect-screen ... ust-gauze/) which act like flyscreens. That should take care of the problems caused by pollen indoors. Not sure though how much it will help keeping small particle matter out though.

[galexinda]

I am not affected by dust levels, but by just about everything else where air quality is concerned and another factor I have to to take into account is the humidity level. Also changes in barometric pressure - the lower it is the more difficult I find it to breathe.

I have noticed a marked increase in my breathing/allergies in Paphos (west side) over the past two years and although I am not affected by the dust (which is more like a fine sand) I have seen a big increase in the amount of dust indoors - regardless of having very fine mesh screens at every window and balcony door.

Mind you, part of my problem could also be due to the fact there is construction nearby, so it depends on the wind direction, likewise if anyone lights a BBQ or wood fire!

On visits to the Polis coastline I find it far easier to breathe normally - noticeable as soon as I get out of the car! Also venturing into the countryside has a positive effect. Too cold in the hills for me, but again the air quality is purer.

So, definitely something that needs to be taken into consideration and, along with other reasons, I recommend renting a property initially when you do come to Cyprus.

[blueskies209]

Thanks both. Will check those screens. We have some construction going on as well. Guess that's not helping.

We like to check out Polis side on some of those air quality notification days - not as ominous as the one the other day but shorter and less intense ones.

[Kili01]

I think that the last poster before yours made a good suggestion. Don't be in a hurry to buy a property yet.
With all your breathing concerns it would make sense to rent in various likely locations, Polis coast, Paphos coast, higher ground villages like Tsada and Drousia, and villages in the lower Troodos Mtn area. That way you will have time to check out the air in likely locations before becomming comitted.
Dee