Google Maps now features air quality

A new online tool rolling out across the country could make a surprisingly big difference to Australia’s health – and your own.

Air pollution in Australia has been recorded at 26 times the level safe for human health, but a new online tool released on Tuesday will enable users to check air quality across the country in real time.

And for some, it could literally mean the difference between life and death.

Air pollution contributes to 3000 premature deaths every year, according to the Lung Foundation Australia. It’s also been linked to increased rates of stroke, diabetes, neonatal mortality, and the onset of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s.

The new Google Maps feature enables users to access a dedicated layer with air quality information from each state and territory, including warnings if outdoor activities are to be avoided.

Air pollution is measured chiefly in terms of the density of tiny airborne particles that are less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, called PM (Particulate Matter) 2.5.

Good quality air has an hourly PM2.5 reading of more than 25µg/m3, but according to Asthma Australia figures, readings as high as 661µg/m3 (26 times greater) were recorded in south western Sydney and Darwin last year.

A preview of the new Google Maps feature on Monday showed generally good air quality in most Australian cities, but health authorities warn conditions will likely worsen as bushfire season approaches.

Google Maps product manager Can Comertoglu said Australia was the third country to get the new air quality feature, after the US and India, but there were plans to roll it out globally.

“We have partnerships with the local authorities in every state sending us station data,” Mr Comertoglu said.

“It’s a live feed. Of course it always depends on the update speed of the station and the EPA [Environment Protection Authority] but it’s intended to show you what the situation is right now, or very recently.”

Can Comertoglu, Product Manager for Google Maps Crisis Response.

Google Maps has a new air quality layer. Supplied

Mr Comertoglu said the air quality feature was being embraced by Google Maps users in the US, with a recent wildfire near Seattle prompting a big spike in residents accessing the information.

Google Maps is supplementing official government air quality readings in the US with results from private citizens using pollution gauges, but this could occasionally be problematic if a sensor picked up readings from a neighbour’s barbecue, Mr Comertoglu said.

The Australian rollout would feature readings only from government authorities, he stressed.

Smoke haze from the bushfires hanging over Melbourne, Wednesday, January 15, 2020. Picture: AAP Image/David Croslin

Angela Cartwright from Asthma Australia said “real time, local air quality information supports people to make decisions based on the current conditions”.

But people also need to know how to respond when the air quality is reduced, Ms Cartwright said.

“This is why we need to see a national air quality public education campaign, which has been recommended by bushfire inquiries and is something we’re working on,” she said.

Lung Foundation Australia CEO Mark Brooke said nearly 1000 Australians died prematurely as a consequence of poor air quality from the Black Summer bushfires, and for nonsmokers, air pollution was now the leading cause of lung cancer.

On low-air quality days, at-risk people could minimise their risk by staying indoors, ensuring adequate ventilation, wearing masks if going outside, and keeping both preventive and rescue medications with them at all times, Mr Brooke said.

Originally published as Google Maps now features air quality