Syracuse Air Quality Matters: Community-Based Monitoring Projects for I-81

A SyracuseCoE Research & Technology Forum and Faculty Workshop

REGISTER

Faculty Workshop

3:00: SyracuseCoE Multiscale Testbed Development Plan, J. Zhang
3:15: Urban Air Quality Monitoring, T. Morin

• Current capabilities of the SyracuseCoE Urban Ecosystem Observatory Tower
• Previous research from the tower
• Future directions to push research from the tower

3:30: Discussion of next steps and opportunities for collaboration

Forum

4:00: Syracuse Air Quality Matters: Community-Based Monitoring Projects for I-81, J. Mirowsky

Major changes are planned for the urban environment of Syracuse, NY. Interstate-81 will be demolished and replaced with a community grid. Local residents have raised concerns about how this will affect air quality during and after construction. To assess the impact, two air quality monitoring projects will be conducted over the summer, spanning the next several years.

Working closely with local advocacy and non-profit groups, researchers will collaborate with the Syracuse community to address health concerns and the impact of changing air quality. Information and resources will be shared so that people can make informed health decisions for themselves, their families and communities.

In the first project, researchers will set up high-quality air monitoring stations in community-selected locations. It will include outreach to local schools to educate students on air quality and health.

The second project deploys a low-cost air quality sensor network throughout Syracuse and its suburbs to complement the high-quality monitors in the first project. These sensors have been used globally and in many US cities to understand local-scale air quality changes.

Both projects prioritize making air quality data publicly available, and this forum will present an outline on how this will be achieved.

MODERATOR: Jianshun “Jensen” Zhang

PRESENTERS:

Jaime Mirowsky, Associate Professor, Chemistry and Environmental Health, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF)

Timothy Morin, Assistant Professor, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry (SUNY ESF)