Community Air Monitoring Network
LEAN’s decades of work have built a network of residents and community organizations that work collaboratively to resolve issues, with a long history of addressing air quality concerns. Air quality concerns have been the most prevalent and long standing issue residents have sought support from LEAN for over the past 39 years. LEAN has employed many different strategies in working to improve air quality in Louisiana. The development of LEAN's Louisiana Community Air Monitoring Network is the latest effort to address air quality concerns in Louisiana. Our goal is to understand local air quality and to help communities to work with local companies and government to seek solutions to observed pollution events in a collaborative manner.
Concern
Many residents in Louisiana reside amongst a variety of potentially hazardous pollution sources including transportation infrastructure (marine shipping, rail and road) as well as hundreds of major industrial sources (power generation, petroleum refining, chemical and plastic manufacturing). This is particularly true of communities within the River Parishes along the Mississippi River in south Louisiana where there has been a long history of community concerns over air pollution, fumes, odors and accidents.
Currently, the Louisiana Department of Environment Quality (LDEQ) maintains approximately 40 stationary monitoring sites to measure air quality. These stationary monitors are insufficient to accurately measure air quality across Louisiana's diverse landscape where thousands of residents live intermingled with hundreds of pollution sources.
Residents living in close proximity to a potentially hazardous source must currently depend on data from the closest stationary monitor which may be miles away, may not detect specific pollutants of concern and may not be positioned appropriately depending on seasonal wind directions. This fundamental data gap, along with persistent community concerns, led LEAN to develop our latest project. Hyper-local monitoring, across a wide range of pollutants is a necessary step to develop a clear picture of actual air quality within the communities we all reside. Without this data, we can not make informed decisions to protect public health and improve quality of life in Louisiana.
Project Summary
In 2023, LEAN received support from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through EPA-OAR-OAQPS-22-01: Enhanced Air Quality Monitoring for Communities, to develop the Louisiana Community Air Monitoring Network. This project aims to expand air quality data and air quality literacy, specifically in the parishes bordering the Mississippi River, between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Louisiana's two largest cities.
LEAN is working to achieve this effort by collecting extensive, high resolution air quality data across the region while coordinating with diverse stakeholders to review this data and identify collaborative opportunities for air quality improvements.
Louisiana Community Air Monitoring Network
The data presented on this website were collected by non-regulatory monitors (air quality sensors). Thus, consistent with Louisiana's Community Air Monitoring Reliability Act, the data may not be used to allege violations or non-compliance with federal or State law. Rather, the data is intended for non-regulatory applications -- specifically, to better understand local air quality and to help communities to work with local companies to seek solutions to observed pollution events in a collaborative manner.
On December 11, 2023, a fleet of mobile monitoring vehicles operated by technology company Aclima, began collecting air quality data around the clock. The monitoring route extends approximately 300 linear miles along the East and West bank of the Mississippi River in south Louisiana. The monitoring route passes through many communities including: Alsen, Baton Rouge, Port Allen, St. Gabriel, Plaquemine, Geismar, Donaldsonville, Convent, St James, Lutcher, Reserve, Norco, Hahnville,St Rose, River Ridge, Waggaman,Jefferson, Westwego, New Orleans, Gretna, St Bernard, Belle Chasse, and Oakville, among others.
Read the analysis of this data collection produced by Aclima here: Hyper local Ambient air pollution mapping, Louisiana Industrial Corridor, Aclima 2024.
Pollutants Measured
Pollutants being measured include: carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), fine particulate matter (PM 2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3), black carbon, tVOC and BTEX(benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene).
Aclima's hyper-local monitoring will continue through mid March 2024. Following this data collection, this unprecedented, region wide dataset will be analyzed to identify areas of concern and locations for continued monitoring.
Aclima’s technical expertise, LEAN’s Technical Director Wilma Subra and Technical Advisor Dr. Slawo Lomnicki are working in cooperation with our community network to assess and analyze the data produced by this project on an on-going basis. LEAN is committed to full transparency and open communication and is providing information produced by this project to all interested parties with the goal of addressing air quality concerns, protecting public health and our environment. All data and resources produced by this project can be found here.
For additional information or if you would like to schedule a data discussion specific to your community, please contact us.
Community Air Maps
MAP- Geismar Community Air Data
Explore this map to view air quality data collected by Aclima's mobile monitoring fleet in the Geismar area.
MAP- St Gabriel Community Air Data
Explore this map to view air quality data collected by Aclima's mobile monitoring fleet in St Gabriel area.
MAP-Alsen Community Air Data
Explore this map to view air quality data collected by Aclima's mobile monitoring fleet in the Alsen area.
MAP-North Baton Rouge Community Air Data
Explore this map to view air quality data collected by Aclima's mobile monitoring fleet in North Baton Rouge.
MAP-Reserve Community Air Data
Explore this map to view air quality data collected by Aclima's mobile monitoring fleet in the Reserve area.
MAP-River Ridge Community Air Data
Explore this map to view air quality data collected by Aclima's mobile monitoring fleet in the River Ridge area.
MAP-St James Community Air Data
Explore this map to view air quality data collected by Aclima's mobile monitoring fleet in the St James area.
Air Monitoring Weekly Data Reports
With the guidance of community concerns and region-wide air monitoring data, Phase 2 of LEAN’s Community Air Monitoring Project is establishing stationary air monitoring sites within participating communities to further track identified concerns and potential air quality improvements. These state of the art solar powered monitors are designed to provide accurate localized data.
Currently participating organizations and stationary monitoring sites hosts include: Alsen Community Village in Alsen, LA Citizens for a Better St Gabriel in St Gabriel, LA Rural Roots LA in Donaldsonville, LA Mt Triumph Baptist Church in St James, LA First Pilgrim Calvary Missionary Baptist Church in Geismar, LA
Community Reports
Moving Forward
LEAN is utilizing the data produced by this effort to facilitate opportunities to reduce air pollution in identified ‘hotspots’ and participating communities.
LEAN is working to expand this network to establish monitoring stations throughout Louisiana where residents live intermingled with a variety of pollution sources. Please reach out if you would like to participate or contribute to the Louisiana Community Air Monitoring Network.
Working to facilitate productive collaboration between diverse stakeholders to improve the air we all breathe in Louisiana
All Community Air Monitoring Network Partners commit to work locally, collaboratively and transparently to improve air quality in their area. Air quality data collection should be tailored to specific pollutants of local concern and collected within areas where they may pose an impact to public health and quality of life. Sensors are calibrated, installed and maintained by experienced, third party air quality contractors to ensure measurements are accurate and independent. Calibrated data streams produced by air monitoring devices are published directly to this website without editing or manipulation by network partners.
Community
Community organizations currently participating include:
- Alsen St. Irma Lee Community Village
- Citizens for a Better St. Gabriel
- Rural Roots (Donaldsonville)
- Mt. Triumph Baptist Church (St. James)
- First Pilgrim Calvary Missionary Baptist Church (Geismar)
If you are a member of a COMMUNITY group, church, school or other organization interested in air quality and would like to host a monitor or just learn more about this project, please reach out.
Business / Industry
Business / industry partners include:
- PENDING Data Calibration - International-Matex Tank Terminals LLC (IMTT) in St Rose
If you are a BUSINESS within Louisiana interesting in contributing air quality data to our network in an effort to improve air quality, we would love to hear from you.
Government
LDEQ (Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality) air quality monitors included on the network map:
- Port Allen
- Capitol
- LSU
- Dutchtown
- Convent
If you are a local GOVERNMENT representative interested in supporting improved air quality for your constituents, we are excited to work with you.
SEND ALL INQUIRIES TO: CONTACT@LEANWEB.ORG
Frequently Asked Questions
LEAN’s Community Air Monitoring Network was developed with funding from the US EPA. This funding is no longer available under the current administration. The continuation of this effort is dependent on fundraising efforts from individual donors and private foundations. You can donate to support this effort here.
LEAN developed a quality assurance project plan that was approved by the US EPA at the beginning of this effort. Our strategy relies on experienced and trusted 3rd party contractors who are proven experts in air quality data collection. Instrument calibration and data management is conducted by these experts as well as our technical advisors. Sensor data collected by this effort has been, and will continue to be, compared to regulatory monitors operated by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to ensure alignment.
The data presented on this website were collected by non-regulatory monitors (air quality sensors). Thus, consistent with Louisiana's Community Air Monitoring Reliability Act, the data may not be used to allege violations or non-compliance with federal or State law. Rather, the data is intended for non-regulatory applications -- specifically, to better understand local air quality and to help communities to work with local companies to seek solutions to observed pollution events in a collaborative manner.
While air quality “sensors” do not meet the stringent requirements for regulatory air quality monitors, they have utility for understanding local air quality and identifying hotspots. To assure a high level of confidence in the data from the air quality sensors, the sensors have been tested adjacent to the State regulatory monitor (known as the “reference monitor”) and adjustments have been made in the sensors to maximize consistency with the Reference monitor.
The level of consistency or correlation between the sensor and the Reference monitor is measured on an r-squared (r2) scale, which shows how well the observed data (from the sensor) aligns with the levels that have been registered by the reference monitor. The US EPA has stated that an r2 level of 0.70 is an acceptable level of consistency or correlation.
Although readings with r2 values less than 0.70 are less reliable in terms of actual peak concentration levels, LEAN believes that where the data show a trend of consistently elevated concentrations of constituents from a common wind direction, the spikes may still merit further investigation and exploration of air quality improvement opportunities.
To participate in this effort LEAN requires Community Air Monitoring Network Partners commit to work locally, collaboratively and transparently.
Air quality data collection should be tailored to specific pollutants of local concern and collected within areas where they may pose an impact to public health and quality of life. Network partners commit to sharing all data collected through this effort publicly through LEAN's website, and to all other network partners in real-time or as quickly as data is reasonably available for dissemination. Community Air Monitoring Network Partners commit to discussing air quality data concerns openly and civilly. All partners commit to working in good faith to identify and assess all potential air quality improvement opportunities.
In addition to our mobile monitoring effort (see Phase 1), contracted through ACLIMA, LEAN has directly deployed 4 stationary monitors. Each of these monitors is funded by LEAN but hosted by a local community organization engaged in improving air quality within their area.
Additionally, International-Matex Tank Terminals LLC (IMTT) voluntarily asked to partner in this network and has installed four AQMesh air quality sensors around their St Rose facility. These monitors were installed and are maintained by a third party contractor. The data stream collected by these monitors is provided directly to LEAN from AQmesh and published on the network map for public view. These monitors are currently being calibrated and will be visible once calibration is complete.
LEAN is actively working to add additional communities and interested parties to our data collection efforts.