Our Story

We, along with many other people living in Bristol, have been inspired by the reputation of our city - the 2015 European Green Capital - as a centre for innovation in environmental sustainability. We were therefore keen from the outset to tackle an environmental issue with local relevance but with international significance.

A February 2017 report commissioned by Bristol City Council estimated that air pollution (specifically NO2 and fine particulate matter) causes 300 deaths per year in Bristol, equivalent to 8.5% of deaths. In some areas of the city the air pollution from car and bus emissions is so prominent that we can smell and almost feel the noxious air entering our lungs.

Naturally, this is an issue which raises passions. In December 2015, the UK government excluded Bristol from its plans to establish new Clean Air Zones in UK cities. In response, local Bristolians established the dramatic ‘Let Bristol Breathe’ campaign - during which protestors used gas masks to illustrate the severity of the problems posed to health by Bristol’s air pollution. This culminated in a petition signed by 4000 members of the public, pressing our Mayor to take urgent action to establish a Clean Air Zone. Furthermore, a survey showed that 50% of people in inner Bristol believe that air pollution is affecting their health.

Fortunately, in November last year, a full meeting of the Bristol City Council finally instructed the Mayor to ‘immediately take all steps needed to reduce deaths and illness linked to polluted air’. Moreover, environmental law firm Client Earth has successfully challenged the UK government’s decision not to allow cities such as Bristol a Clean Air Zone, and in February 2017, Bristol was granted £500,000 to assess the feasibility of a Clean Air Zone in the city centre.

As Bristol’s 2017 iGEM team, we found the opportunity to use synthetic biology to offer an innovative and complementary solution to this environmental problem - which has been identified as a pertinent issue by members of our local communities - irresistible.

The UK government has recently announced that the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will be banned by 2040. However, we find the prospect of enduring several more decades of morbidly polluted inner cities unacceptable. If the dynamic and exciting field of synthetic biology can help right now, why not try to harness its possibilities?

The dangers - NOx gases

The term ‘NOx’ refers to nitrogen oxides - predominantly NO and NO2. These are poisonous, highly reactive gases which constitute one of the most abundant and dangerous types of air pollution.

NOx gases are produced naturally, for example by lightning strikes, but are released in more significant quantities by burning fuel at high temperatures. NOx is therefore commonly produced by industrial processes. In cities, car and bus emissions are the primary sources of NOx.

NOx contributes to global warming by depleting ozone in the stratosphere. However, NOx is also harmful to human health at ground level. NOx gases directly cause inflammation in the lungs. Moreover, they react with a wide range of molecules to form toxic products including ozone and fine particulate matter (PM), both of which are harmful to human health. When inhaled, PM damages the lungs and heart and aggravates asthma.

Understanding and controlling NOx gases is therefore central to reducing the impacts of air pollution on health and the environment.