City of Milan, Amat, and Bloomberg Philanthropies Launch New Network of Sensors to Monitor Air Quality and Support Urban Planning

Milan – Today, the City of Milan, Agenzia Mobilità Ambiente e Territorio (AMAT) – the city agency responsible for local air quality monitoring – and Bloomberg Philanthropies announced the deployment of thirty air quality sensors to collect local data on air pollution. The thirty ultra-compact sensor microstations installed near schools and other priority sites will be integrated to the Lombardy Regional Environmental Protection Agency (ARPA)’s existing air quality monitoring network. The new sensors will help evaluate the effectiveness of policies and actions to protect areas from air pollution and support Milan to deliver on its Air Quality and Climate Plan.

“Today Milan can count on a high technology and reliable network of ten air quality stations,” said Milan’s Green and Environment Councilor Elena Grandi. “The donation of these sensors will enable us to better understand our city’s air and support us to make more impactful decisions for Milan neighborhoods. Here in via Beroldo we surely have an intervention model: instituting a pedestrian street around schools is not only a road safety factor for families but also and foremost a public health and ecological transition intervention, that aims at reducing particulates and pollution in areas destined for kids.”

“The world’s leading cities recognize that communities need clean air for their health and livelihoods – and Milan is working to do just that,” said Antha Williams, who leads Bloomberg Philanthropies’ environment program. “Bloomberg Philanthropies is glad to partner with Mayor Sala to increase the city’s access to data to help take a targeted and informed approach to cleaning Milan’s air and provide valuable lessons and solutions for other cities around the globe.”

The data collected from the thirty new sensors will be analyzed by AMAT, in collaboration with ARPA Lombardia, and integrated with information from the existing reference network of five highly reliable advanced sensors managed by ARPA and the Municipality of Milan. The network will increase the amount of air quality data available to the public and also inform city authorities on the policies necessary to reduce pollution in Milan neighborhoods, especially in the vicinity of sensitive sites such as schools. 

Today’s announcement was made on via Beroldo, one of the streets where a sensor has been deployed and where there are two schools –  Ciresola Comprehensive School on one side and the Carducci High School and the Manzoni Civic Center on the other. The street has recently become pedestrianized to create healthier and safer spaces for students.  Tomorrow, volunteers and students will create art installations on via Beroldo thanks to a collaboration between the schools and WAU! (We Are Urban). These transformations are part of the municipality’s Piazza Aperte program, created with support from Bloomberg Associates, the pro bono city consultancy of Bloomberg Philanthropies.

“It is surprising to see how this area has completely changed thanks to the action of many citizens who made it possible to give public space back to people,” said Gaia Romani, Milan Councilor for Civic Services and Participation. “And while today we launched a network of sensors that will allow us to measure and thus improve air quality, in the next few weeks we’ll add another piece with the singing of a Collaboration Pact between the City, schools, and associations. A tool that will further activate this space, with activities aimed for its more frequent users, kids.”

“As our founder Mike Bloomberg says, ‘If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it’,” said Adam Freed, Principal at Bloomberg Associates and an advisor to Milan on climate and sustainability initiatives. “These sensors will provide the municipality, its partners, and residents with the localized, street-level air quality data they need to target actions to reduce air pollution in areas where vulnerable residents, like children, are most exposed to dirty air.”

Milan is among the top ten percent of EU cities with the most polluted air and has the highest number of pollution-related deaths that could be avoided by meeting WHO air quality recommendations. Under the leadership of Mayor Giuseppe Sala, Milan has taken bold action to tackle air pollution in the city through their Air Quality and Climate Plan. The plan, which abides to the C40 Fossil-Fuel-Free Streets Declaration,  is working to create a zero-emission area in the city center by 2030 by restricting polluting vehicles and strengthening air quality monitoring. 

Bloomberg Philanthropies has worked with the City of Milan to reduce air pollution since November 2021, when they first partnered on a local air quality monitoring network across the city with the installation of low-cost sensors to measure air pollution. This project also expands the City of Milan’s partnership with Bloomberg Associates, whose work has supported developing the City’s most recent Climate and Air Quality Plan, modernizing the City’s economic development strategy, creating green public space, and making it easier for people to move to the city.

This announcement builds on Bloomberg Philanthropies’ efforts to support cities around the world to reduce air pollution, fight climate change, and ensure better, longer lives for communities. Bloomberg Philanthropies also partners with Brussels, Jakarta, London, Paris, Warsaw, and other governments around the world to make a difference in the fight against air pollution and scale solutions through C40 and other partners.

About Bloomberg Philanthropies:
Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 700 cities and 150 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on five key areas for creating lasting change: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a pro bono consultancy that works in cities around the world. In 2022, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed US$ 1.7 billion. For more information, please visit  bloomberg.org, sign up for our newsletter,  or follow us on  Facebook,  Instagram,  YouTube,  Twitter, and LinkedIn.

About Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Global Clean Air Program:
Bloomberg Philanthropies leads the world’s most ambitious clean air effort that aims to improve air quality through support for pilot projects in cities, as well as partnerships with national governments and organizations. This includes initiatives in Brussels, Jakarta, London, Milan, Paris, Warsaw, and other governments around the world.

About Agenzia Mobilità Ambiente e Territorio (AMAT):
AMAT, i.e. Agenzia Mobilità Ambiente e Territorio (Agency for Mobility Environment and Territory), is a consulting company, totally owned by the City of Milan, committed to providing strategic planning and technical studies for air quality improvement, urban mobility and environment quality. AMAT is supporting the Administration to deploy several relocatable multi-parameter ‘near reference’ monitoring stations in order to support air quality measures planning. AMAT takes part also in a new EU-funded project ‘H2020 CARES’ which will monitor emissions from vehicles in real-time driving conditions. Furthermore, AMAT supports the Municipality in the stakeholder engagement process regarded by the Administration as an enabler of the successful implementation of the “environmental transition” process.

Media Contact:
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Marshall Cohen – mcohen@bloomberg.org; +1 646 819 2611