The Evaluation of Particulate Dust Measurements in Senegal, Cape Verde and Burkina Faso during 2016 and 2017

Globally, air pollution is indirectly responsible for 1 in 9 deaths and a major cause of respiratory disease. The Sahara desert represents a significant risk factor to the population of West Africa because of the high concentrations of dust that is transported during the dry season. Unfortunately, there are very few monitoring stations in the Sahelian zone to measure particulate matter (PM). From the late summer of 2016 through the spring of 2017, observations of PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 were evaluated at locations in Senegal, Burkina Faso and Cape Verde using moderately expensive and inexpensive PM sensors. We examine the PM estimates and compare these with observed PM10 and PM2.5 measurements in Dakar, Senegal and Aerosol Optical Depth. We also highlight dust estimates during a major dust event from a local hospital in Senegal.