Diseño y operación de sistemas de vigilancia de calidad del aire en Colombia

Abstract

The Air Quality Surveillance Systems (SVCA) in Colombia have evolved in recent years as one of the main strategies implemented to improve urban air quality. These systems have evolved in accordance with the needs of the national context and based on the normative elements that provide the necessary guidelines for their correct operation. Through the air quality monitoring and tracking protocol, the Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development (MADS) and the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM) dictate the design, operation and management guidelines of the SVCA implemented in the country. The main objective of the following document is to develop technical and methodological criteria to update and modify that protocol. For this, the current SVCA installed in the country, the specific conditions of the territory and the regulatory advances at the international level were considered. First, a detailed review of the current content of the protocol was made in comparison with normative documents and international reference guides in air quality monitoring. Secondly, the main difficulties presented in the application of protocol content were identified based on national expert comments on the subject. Finally, the criteria that should be prioritized when modifying and updating the protocol were established. The results show that there is an average positive correlation (ρ = 0.192) between the criteria prioritized by the reference countries in the monitoring of air quality and the criteria prioritized at the national level for the design and operation of air quality monitoring networks. At the national level, the main prioritized criteria are related to the SVCA design phase, the diagnosis phase, and measurement techniques and methods. Although there are applicable criteria in countries in different regions of the world, there are criteria whose implementation requires analysis national, regional and local according to the specific conditions of the place where you want to implement the SVCA.