Claiming an estimated 36,000 premature deaths every year according to Public Health England, air pollution poses one of the most persistent and deadly occupational hazards in the UK.
In particular, construction stands out as one of the major sources of fine particulate matter. Data by the Centre for Low Emissions Construction suggests the sector accounts for around 30% of particulate matter (PM10) emissions, 8% of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and 4% of nitrogen oxides (NOx). Often kicked up by demolition, excavation and material handling, the dust generated by construction can penetrate deep into the lungs, causing respiratory and cardiovascular problems which silently erode public health and the environment. Alarmingly, the Health and Safety Executive indicates more than 500 construction workers die annually from silica dust exposure alone, with the negative effects not only confined to workers – dust spreads, impacting downwind communities and compounding social inequities.
Unfortunately, this challenge looks only set to intensify. Figures from the Building Cost Information Service forecast an 18% boom for the UK construction sector between now and 2030. Furthermore, plans for 1.5 million new homes by 2029 seen as crucial to solving the housing crisis and boosting economic growth by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner will continue to expose even more workers to potentially deadly dust – even if there is doubt on whether this target is indeed achievable.
So, what can be done? Excitingly, emerging advances in AI look to promise the kind of breakthrough the construction sector has long needed. Not only does AI hold the potential to transform worker safety and strengthen construction firms’ duty of care, but through better resource efficiency it can also help enable firms to drive sustainable growth while keeping pace with ambitious building targets.
How AI can trap dust and reduce waste, saving lives
Traditional dust suppression systems are often ineffective in fully controlling PM emissions due to their reliance on manual operation or simple, one-size-fits-all mechanisms. These methods usually involve sporadic water spraying, which is neither resource-efficient nor optimised for changing environmental conditions. As such, PM levels remain largely unchanged, while manual control requires significant labour, leading to higher costs and reduced focus on other safety measures.
Instead, using embedded AI sensors and machine learning technology, misting units can continuously monitor local PM levels and analyse dust influencing conditions such as wind speed, temperature, and particulate concentration. This intelligence then allows them to calibrate the exact amount of water needed for effective dust suppression. In fact, our own studies indicate AI’s capability to cut emissions by up to 80% during active construction site operations while also conserving water and energy.
Not only is AI ensuring resource efficiency, and reducing waste, but machine learning can use data from previous operations to inform future decisions, thereby improving overall efficiency and further reducing particulate emissions over time.
AI-driven solutions can transform construction site safety and environmental management through intelligent monitoring and adaptive control, enabling proactive measures to protect workers and optimise operations, this includes:
- Pollution prediction – the use of AI and real-time data analysis to forecast pollution levels before they become hazardous to workers. By predicting air quality changes, firms can use technology to deploy proactive mitigation strategies, ensuring safer and cleaner construction environments
- Establish mist sensitive zones – applying AI to identify and map areas where mist spraying should be avoided, such as electrical installations, raw material storage, and sensitive equipment. By dynamically adjusting mist deployment, AI can prevent potential hazards while maintaining effective dust control
- Active dust sensing – by detecting airborne particles and dynamically adjusting mist levels for maximum suppression, AI solutions can minimise health risks, enhance visibility, and ensure compliance with environmental regulations.
- Environmental adaptation – AI can automatically adjust to different environmental conditions, ensuring reliable operation in various climates and worksite conditions whether in extreme heat, cold, or high humidity.
Calling on the Government to back AI-adoption for cleaner air
Beyond direct on-site dust suppression, integrated sensors and IoT connectivity allow air quality monitors and cameras to feed data directly into operations and reporting systems. This information can then be shared with policymakers and across the industry to further inform and better existing standards and practices.
The UK already has strong policy frameworks, such as the Clean Air Strategy which commits the country to reducing average PM2.5 exposure by 35% by 2040. In addition, the Clean Air (Human Rights) Bill, also known as Ella’s Law and due for its second reading in the House of Commons this autumn, is a proposed piece landmark legislation that would enshrine in law the human right to breathe clean air. This would transform public health protections from advisory targets into enforceable legal rights.
Crucially, Ella’s Law establishes a legal framework for stronger accountability, more transparent air quality monitoring, and an incentivised adoption of innovative technologies, such as AI, that enable cleaner operations.
With the growing pressure to build more sustainably, coupled with ever more intensive climate-driven risks like heatwaves and associated high air pollution alerts, the government must support the widespread adoption of innovative dust-control solutions to protect public health. Achieving this requires targeted funding, regulatory incentives, and rapid integration of these solutions into construction and infrastructure projects.
If implemented effectively, the UK has the opportunity to not only to set itself on the right path but to also establish a precedent for other countries to follow worldwide. Stricter environmental regulations globally demand sustainable dust-control solutions, yet existing methods often fall short. For instance, studies by India’s Council on Energy, Environment and Water suggest that 20–30% of air pollution in the country comes from industrial sources, much of it from construction.
Clean air is the cornerstone of sustainable development, and AI offers a transformative tool for smarter and safer site management, helping to protect both workers’ lives and the wider community. By combining advanced AI technologies, transparent data, and committed leadership, we can build cities that are not just liveable, but truly breathable.
Nishika Mehta is Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Mistify AI, a climate-tech startup founded in 2023. Headquartered in Oxfordshire (UK) with engineering talent in India, Mistify develops autonomous, solar-powered dust suppression systems for construction, mining and industrial sites. The company emerged from the UK innovation ecosystem (Oxford Brookes University’s entrepreneurship programs and Oxfordshire Greentech) and has since gained support from Oxford City Council, Enterprise Oxfordshire, and industry networks. Mistify aims to help its customers meet environmental regulations and ESG targets by eliminating particulate pollution.
