The 2019 ‘Annual air quality evaluation in the Śląskie province’ study reports indicate that nearly 89% of the Upper Silesian agglomeration population lives in areas with exceeded annual PM 2.5 concentration norms. Research shows that indoor air is even 100 times more polluted (Kim 2018). The European ‘SINPHONIE – the Schools Indoor Pollution and Health’ project results show that indoor air in Polish schools has one of the highest levels of formaldehyde and benzene concentrations in Europe. This can have negative impact on children’s concentration (Lowe 2018) and increase the level of their absenteeism (Shendell 2004). Our observations show that in Poland there is no comprehensive school indoor air quality measurement programme that would explore the causes of pollution and propose preventive actions.
Thanks to cooperation with our partner, Górnośląsko-Zagłębiowska Metropolia (GZM), we have engaged 10 schools from the metropolis, at which we will involve teachers, children, and their parents in measuring the level of indoor school air pollution. Together we will work on projects aiming at improving air quality. We will implement selected ideas with support of individuals interested in the topic of air quality and its improvement. GZM will help us prepare a research report and implement our projects. Together with our partner, we will strive to ensure that solutions tested within the project are permanently incorporated into initiatives taken up by local authorities in the Śląskie province.