This week, ECOS member agencies spotlighted a variety of air quality activities as part of Air Quality Awareness Week 2022.
Celebrating with the theme “Healthy Air – Important for Everyone,” the District of Columbia Department of Energy & Environment and hosted panels, film screenings, and a community walk, and launched updated interactive air quality trends reports on the District’s Open Data Portal.
Meanwhile, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources touted a recent study with U.S. EPA involving the placement of low-cost personal air quality sensors near existing, and highly accurate, regulatory-grade monitors. As part of a nationwide effort involving 16 states, Iowa collected data used to improve results by comparing regulatory data with PurpleAir sensor data. The study yielded a method to make sensor results more reliable.
As part of citizen science and sensors day on May 4, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection highlighted its Air Sensors Grant Program that runs a competitive award program to provide PurpleAir sensors to communities to allow them to monitor the levels of fine particulate matter. In January, the program awarded 292 air sensors to 39 communities.
The Washington Department of Ecology kicked off the week with a blog post that provided readers with basic information on air pollution including health effects and symptoms of exposure. The blog also featured a video on how to build your own clean air fan and details on how to access information on current air quality through AirNow.gov and the state’s own Air Quality app.
And the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality produced a series of videos detailing the work of the Air Quality Division. This year’s videos include information on the monitoring network, permitting, innovations, and wildfires.
