Alarming air quality in Brandenburg: Fine dust levels blow up limit values!

Alarming air quality in Brandenburg: Fine dust levels blow up limit values!

The air quality in Brandenburg an der Havel gives cause for concern. On June 18, 2025, alarming fine dust values were measured at the measuring station at Werner-Seelen-Seelen-Sportplatz. The current measurements show a concentration of 100 µg/m³ for PM10, which exceeds the limit for "very bad". This limit is 50 µg/m³ per cubic meter of air, with loud MAZ-ONLINE.de only exceeded in a year is.

The health risks should not be underestimated: around 240,000 people die in the EU every year due to fine dust loads. A short -term recommendation is to avoid "very bad" air to avoid physical exertion outdoors, especially for sensitive people. In the case of "poor" air quality, sensitive people should also avoid outdoor efforts, while in the case of "moderate" quality, no immediate health effects can be expected, but caution is required.

fine dust and its sources

But what causes this fine dust at all? The fine dust values for PM10 and since 2008 for PM2.5 have been recorded in Germany. Traffic, industry and other issuers are the main cause of the high values, especially in metropolitan areas. Compared to the 1990s, the PM10 annual means of 50 µg/m³ fell to currently between 15 and 20 µg/m³, as reported by the Environmental Bundesamt . Weather conditions, such as dry winter or hot summer, can lead to temporarily high values. On January 23, 2017, an alarming value of 176 µg/m³ was measured.

But traffic is not only a problem: in addition to primary fine dusts that come directly from sources such as vehicles or industrial plants, there are also secondary fine dust that arise from chemical reactions in the air. These can be caused by gaseous pollutants such as ammonia and sulfur dioxide, which also reinforces the load.

Current health risks

A comprehensive health -damaging burden of fine dust and nitrogen dioxide is evident in Germany. According to the latest data from German Environmental Aid, 99 percent of the measurement stations exceed the WHO recommendation of 5 µg/m³ for fine dust. Almost three quarters of the stations show values of over 10 µg/m³ for nitrogen dioxide, especially in cities such as Munich and Essen, which are often the leaders at the limit of 40 µg/m³. The {German Environmental Hilfe} demands to be determined by the Federal Government by early 2025 in accordance with the recommendations of the WHO.

The WHO recommendations were drastically lowered in 2021. In the case of strict compliance, 28,900 deaths from fine dust and 10,000 by nitrogen dioxide could be avoided in Germany annually. The limit for health -damaging fine dust is already 9 µg/m³ in the United States, while in Germany values of up to 25 µg/m³ are still permitted.

It remains to be seen which measures are taken to sustainably improve air quality. The air we breathe has a direct impact on our health and well -being. Therefore, it is crucial that both the federal government and the citizens are actively fighting for better air.