How Novacene helped model air quality for the Commonwealth Games
In July 2022, more than 5,000 athletes from 72 nations within the Commonwealth gathered together in Birmingham for the 22nd outing of the Commonwealth Games, the largest-ever games held to date.
A key strategic priority for the Games’ sustainability ambition was to create a carbon neutral legacy. For organisers, this meant taking responsibility for the event’s climate impact in a credible, holistic manner, embedded in every aspect of the event.
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“Novacene’s innovative approach to measure and monitoring air quality made its team a good project partner for this multi-agency project.”
Minimising the impact on air quality
To reduce the emission of air pollutants, the event’s organisers sought to minimise additional traffic during the Games period through partnerships. Working with Transport for West Midlands, for example, spectators were encouraged to use public transport, walk or cycle during their visit wherever possible.
Alongside this, organisers worked with Novacene and the WM-Air program at University of Birmingham to measure and model air quality during the games.
Modeling for future success
WM-Air utilizes 26 sensors installed across a trio of sites to gain deeper understanding of pollution sources and levels throughout the region and, importantly, the capability of predicting air quality, health and economic impacts of potential policy measures.
As a project partner, Novacene works alongside bodies including: the West Midlands Combined Authority, Transport for West Midlands and local authorities including Birmingham and Coventry City Councils.
With the help of Novacene, air quality at the Games was measured at three sites. As well as the University and Alexander Stadium, 26 additional air quality sensors from Novacene were deployed at Edgbaston and Alexander Stadium.
Client Feedback
“Novacene’s innovative approach to measure and monitoring air quality made its team a good project partner for this multi-agency project.”
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