Tunis/Tunisia — The National Institute of Meteorology (French: INM) said Monday it had received three fixed stations to monitor air pollutants, such as sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3) and carbon monoxide (CO) as well as atmospheric dust. These stations also help measure the actual meteorological situation linked to air pollutants.

The INM also took delivery of two mobile stations to measure carbon dioxide and relevant atmospheric data, such as temperature and humidity in a bid to monitor the concentration of this pollutant across Tunisia, pursuant to the recommendations of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

These purchases fall under the TUNisia-Italy Cross-Border Environment Net platform for emergency response (NETTUNIT) project, co-funded by the European Union (EU) under the Tunisia-Italy European Neighbourhood Instrument Cross-Border Cooperation-ENI CBC programme 2014-2020.

These stations were set up at the INM headquarters for a trial phase before being moved to three coastal areas, in line with the NETTUNIT project goals.

The NETTUNIT aims to design a fully operational platform producing weather warnings as well as atmospheric and sea pollution warnings, mainly for civil protection services, local health services and other Tunisian and Italian stakeholders.

It will also provide a unique opportunity to respond to atmospheric and marine pollution threats and boost cooperation between Tunisia and Italy in addressing risks that can have serious consequences for people and the environment in both countries.

The project also aims to develop a mobile app to send alerts to citizens in the form of geo-localised data (maps, text, images, etc.).