Clean Air Day: What Do We Breathe in Argentina?

In a country where public and real-time data on air quality are still scarce, Sustainability Without Borders promotes a monitoring network together with provincial and municipal governments. The initiative is already advancing in Neuquén, Córdoba, La Pampa, Jujuy, and Buenos Aires. Every September 7th, the International Day of Clean Air for a Blue Sky is commemorated, a date established by the United Nations to highlight one of the greatest environmental risks to health. This year, under the theme 'Clean Air for Climate Action', the day focuses on an increasingly evident relationship: many of the sources that pollute the air also drive global warming. Air pollution contributed to 6.4 million premature deaths and 5.5 million new cases of childhood asthma during the last year, according to the message released by the UN Secretary-General for the 2026 commemoration. The World Health Organization also notes that 99% of the world's population lives in places where air quality exceeds its guideline values. Faced with this global problem, Argentina faces an additional difficulty: in much of the territory, there are no local, public, georeferenced, and updated data to know what communities are breathing. The information gap in Argentina A recent survey conducted by Dr. H. Trapassi and collaborators identified that only 10 of the 24 Argentine jurisdictions have any air quality regulations. In most cases, there are also no public data or updated official sites. Moreover, none of the surveyed regulations come close to the guidelines published by the WHO in 2021, while the specific national legislation has not been updated since 1973. The lack of information becomes especially critical during smoke episodes, forest fires, thermal inversions, or days of high pollution. Without timely and nearby measurements, it is more difficult to issue health recommendations, identify exposed populations, and design appropriate public policies. 'What is not measured can hardly be managed, let alone protected,' says Doctor Damián Markov, a pediatrician specialized in Climate Medicine and Environmental Health and coordinator of the Climate and Health Area of Sustainability Without Borders (SSF). A national network with open information To begin to fill that gap, SSF created the Clean Air Project, an initiative that seeks to build a National Air Quality Monitoring Network together with provincial and municipal governments, institutions, and companies. The project installs internationally validated and low-cost monitors in places where no information is currently available. The equipment uses open-source technology from AirGradient and records fine particulate matter (PM2.5), in addition to other environmental parameters. The data is published in real-time and integrated into international citizen science platforms like OpenAQ, allowing them to be incorporated into a public and comparable database. The location of each device is defined based on four criteria: absence of previous data, exposure of vulnerable populations, willingness of authorities to use the information, and technical feasibility. For this reason, hospitals, health centers, schools, and urban spaces with intense circulation are prioritized. Monitors in five provinces The first stage has already allowed installation or distribution of equipment in Neuquén, Córdoba, La Pampa, Jujuy, and Buenos Aires, according to the environmental and health characteristics of each territory. In Neuquén, seven monitors were installed together with the General Directorate of Environmental Health and Climate Change of the provincial Ministry of Health. They are located in Añelo, Plottier, Colonia Rural, Zapala, San Patricio del Chañar, Chos Malal, and San Martín de los Andes. The distribution will allow observation of situations associated with the use of biomass for heating, heavy traffic, hydrocarbon activity, and thermal inversions. Córdoba added another seven devices, located in the provincial capital, Agua de Oro, Despeñaderos, Oncativo, San Francisco, Villa Dolores, and Villa María. The network will allow comparison of urban, industrial, and productive environments with different exposure profiles. In La Pampa, two monitors were placed in Toay and in the corridor connecting that locality with Santa Rosa. Jujuy received three more, destined for Libertador General San Martín, Volcán, and the southern area of San Salvador de Jujuy. The initiative also began to extend in the province of Buenos Aires. Clean air, health, and climate action Air pollution does not affect everyone equally. Children, the elderly, those with chronic illnesses, and those working outdoors face greater risks. Therefore, having accessible information is not just a technical issue: it is also a tool for prevention and health equity. Monitoring also connects the health and climate agendas. Fossil fuel-based transportation, some industrial processes, burning, and fires release pollutants harmful to health and, at the same time, contribute to climate change. The increase in temperatures and the higher frequency of fires and heatwaves can, in turn, worsen episodes of poor air quality. The Clean Air Project aims for each measurement to translate into concrete decisions, from recommendations to protect sensitive groups to mobility, energy, production, and risk management policies. Its next goal is to expand federal coverage and involve local communities in the use of data and care of the equipment, to sustain the network beyond political cycles. Governments, institutions, and companies interested in joining can contact Sustainability Without Borders via [email protected]. The interactive map of the network and more information about the project are available at sustentabilidadsf.org.ar/aire-limpio. Source: Sustainability Without Borders