The three-day air quality forecast is now available to citizens on the website of the Croatian Meteorological and Hydrological Service (DHMZ), meteo.hr. This new DHMZ product provides practical information on air quality for the current day and the following two days. This allows citizens to better plan their outdoor activities and make informed decisions to protect their health and the health of their loved ones.

The forecast predicts the concentrations of four key pollutants that have a significant impact on public health: Particulate matter less than 2.5 and 10 micrometres (μm) in diameter, known as PM2.5 and PM10, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ground-level ozone (O3).

By selecting a specific pollutant for a specific day, a map of Croatia is displayed showing the distribution of concentrations within clearly marked zone and agglomeration boundaries. The air quality values are displayed on a colour scale from Good to Extremely Poor, with each predicted value linked to the World Health Organization (WHO) health recommendations. The forecasts are updated daily.

The three-day air quality forecast is the result of the ATMOSYS (LIFE+) air modelling system, which was developed specifically for Croatia as part of the EU AIRQ structural project.

An important step for health protection

The air quality level for each pollutant is determined on the basis of the predicted concentrations for a given day, calculated as a 24-hour average concentration for PM2.5, PM10 and NO2 and as a maximum 8-hour daily value for O3.

Air quality is categorised on a scale from zero (0) to ten (10): Good – 0, Acceptable – 2, Moderate – 4, Poor – 6, Very Poor – 8, and Extremely Poor – 10. These values are linked to World Health Organization (WHO) health recommendations for the general population and sensitive groups such as children and adults with respiratory or heart problems. The recommendations are based on scientific studies on the health effects of air pollution.

This initiative is an important step towards protecting the health of Croatian citizens, meeting European Union standards and increasing transparency through open and timely access to air quality data. Citizens can use the three-day air quality forecast as a supplement to the data on measured pollutant concentrations available in near real time on the Air Quality in the Republic of Croatia website, which is managed by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition, and on the DHMZ website.