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Neighborhood- and Time-Specific Air Quality at a Glance: Busan Metropolitan City Launches “Detailed Air Quality Forecast Map” Service

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Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health & Environment announced that it has launched the “Regional Detailed Air Quality Forecast Map Service” to help citizens easily and intuitively understand air quality conditions in their daily living areas.

Until now, air quality information has been provided based on observation data from 32 monitoring stations installed across Busan. As a result, residents living far from these stations faced difficulties in identifying accurate air quality conditions near their homes, leading to information blind spots.

To address these limitations, the institute has adopted an advanced scientific forecasting system. The entire city of Busan has been divided into a dense grid measuring 1 kilometer by 1 kilometer, enabling air quality conditions to be analyzed and displayed on a map without omission for every neighborhood.

In addition, instead of concentration figures that are difficult for the general public to understand, the service uses the Comprehensive Air Quality Index (CAI), categorizing air quality into four levels—Good, Moderate, Poor, and Very Poor—so that conditions can be understood at a glance.

Notably, this service provides information even for areas without air pollution monitoring stations, enabling residents in previously underserved areas to access air quality forecast information.

Key features include neighborhood-tailored information that provides precise air quality data around residential areas such as apartment complexes and schools on a 1-square-kilometer grid basis; three-day air quality forecasts that predict hourly changes from the current day through the day after tomorrow, allowing citizens to plan outings and outdoor activities; and easy-to-understand visual information that uses a color-coded system—Good (blue), Moderate (green), Poor (yellow), and Very Poor (red)—to clearly convey air quality conditions.

The Regional Detailed Air Quality Forecast Map is available to anyone through the Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health & Environment’s Information Disclosure System under the menu path “Environmental Information – Atmospheric Environment – Air Quality Forecast Map.” The institute plans to continuously improve the service by enhancing its features and overall quality.

The Director of the Busan Metropolitan City Institute of Health & Environment stated, “This service is particularly meaningful as it was developed in-house through the active use of existing observation data and forecasting technologies, along with collaborative research by our staff, rather than through the construction of a new system.” The Director added, “We hope that by providing practical, everyday air quality information that citizens can truly feel and use in their daily lives, the service will offer tangible support for health management and outdoor activity planning.”