Introduction

The Department of Archaeology and Natural History at the Australian National University in Canberra and the Health Protection Service, ACT Health, offer a service that forecasts the level of pollen in the air. The forecast alerts those who suffer from hay fever and seasonal asthma of the likelihood of being exposed to high levels of grass pollen, enabling sufferers to take preventative measures in danger periods.

About the service

The service provides a daily pollen count and forecast of grass pollen levels in the air around Canberra for the next 6 days. The count and forecast are updated daily at about 4pm and are offered free-of-charge during Canberra's peak allergy period from October 1 to January 31 each year.

Who benefits?

Members of the general public who suffer from the allergy conditions of hay fever and seasonal asthma benefit.

Up to 50% of the population have the potential to suffer from these conditions and 25% of the population suffer regularly.

Why is the service important?

Hay fever and seasonal asthma can cause severe respiratory distress in sufferers. Research at the Australian National University has identified grass pollens as the major contributor to allergies in the outdoor atmosphere of the city. Today, allergy is the "number one environmental disease", and is considered to be increasing in frequency.

If forewarned, hayfever and asthma sufferers can take preventative measures such as avoiding high pollen areas (e.g. gardens and the countryside) or by taking appropriate medication with them when venturing outside.

How it works

The Department of Archaeology and Natural History has the facilities to measure pollen levels in Canberra. Daily measurements are taken and combined with the weather forecast to produce a grass pollen forecast. For the collection of pollen, air is sampled with a Burkard Volumetric Air Sampler located at the Australian National University. This collects the pollen grains (and of course other particles from the air) on a microscope slide coated with a special glue that remains sticky on hot days and when it's raining. The slide is removed from the sampler daily and stained so that the pollen grains can be counted when viewed with a microscope.

The count and forecast are supplied to users of the service at the same time each day. The count is given as a qualitative assessment, on a scale from low to extremely high, and as actual values of the number of grass pollen grains per cubic meter of air/total number of all pollen types. For example, 30/105 means there were 30 grass pollen grains and 105 pollen grains of all types per cubic meter of air in the preceding 24-hr period.

Background to the service

For the last few years, scientists in the Department of Archaeology and Natural History have collated and analysed Canberra's pollen. The Department now provides this service through its collaboration with the Health Protection Service, ACT Health.

The service is under the direction of Professor Simon Haberle, an Associate Professor in the School of Culture, History and Language at the Australian National University and specializing in the study of palynology (the study of pollen and spores).