Air pollution has become one of the serious health threats that society has learned to normalize, despite its effects on the health and quality of life of millions of people. This was the view of Dr. Juan Escrig Murúa, full professor at the Department of Physics of the Universidad de Santiago and researcher at the Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, CEDENNA, in a column published by El Mostrador.
In the text, titled “The air our children will inherit”, the academic reflects on the recent critical pollution episodes in Santiago and raises a question that, in his view, should have a more permanent place in public discussion: what air will the next generations inherit?
“The question does not arise from alarmism. It arises from scientific evidence,” says the researcher, noting that air pollution usually enters the public conversation only for a few days, especially when environmental alerts or pre-emergencies are declared, before being displaced by other urgent matters.
From a scientific point of view, Dr. Escrig explains that an important part of the problem is related to scale. PM2.5 particles, monitored during critical episodes, are about forty times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. Many of the most harmful particles can reach nanometric dimensions, allowing them to cross the body’s natural defenses, reach the lungs and even enter the bloodstream.
“Air pollution is, to a large extent, a problem of scale. The most harmful particles are invisible to our eyes, but their effects are profoundly real,” he writes in the column.
In this context, the CEDENNA researcher argues that understanding how these particles move in the atmosphere, how they interact with the body and how to reduce their impact requires sustained scientific research, technological development and specialized capacity building.
He also highlights that some of the most promising solutions arise precisely from the nanoscale. Nanotechnology makes it possible to advance in more precise sensors to monitor pollutants, materials capable of capturing harmful particles and new energy technologies that could help reduce emissions.
For CEDENNA, reflections like this reinforce the importance of research in nanoscience and nanotechnology applied to the country’s challenges, especially in areas such as the environment, health, energy and the development of advanced materials.
Dr. Escrig stresses that improvements in air quality do not happen by chance, but are the result of scientific knowledge, public policies, technological innovation and collective decisions sustained over time.
“The most important legacy we leave our children is not only the city we build, but also the air we allow them to breathe,” the academic concludes.
You can access the full column HERE
