DuPage Air Monitoring Project

 By Jeff Gahris

Air pollution in the United States has been a vexing problem since the EPA was established in 1970. We have seen a substantial improvement in air quality overall, but there are still localized areas where issues persist. Often these are in environmental justice communities.

Can it be that we have this problem in DuPage County? To answer this question the River Prairie Group obtained a portable air sensor to evaluate neighborhood air quality, thanks to a grant from the Illinois Chapter of the Sierra Club’s Conservation Committee.

The Airbeam3 detects small respirable air particles, and is very sensitive at detecting diesel exhaust from train locomotives and vehicles such as trucks. It is not suitable for measuring other pollutants of concern such as formaldehyde, benzene or ethylene oxide that may be present in a given community. Where it shines is in its portability. We can use it in neighborhoods where there are no stationary monitors, thereby finding places that may not be adequately monitored for air quality.

It also appears to be accurate when compared to monitors used by Illinois EPA’s air monitoring network.

We are looking for opportunities to use the sensor in order to document communities experiencing to excessive particulate pollutants. We can loan it out to community groups for this purpose. To learn more, send an email to Jeff Gahris at jgahris@gmail.com. Our goal – healthy air for everyone!