Community-based participatory research for low-cost air pollution monitoring in the wake of unconventional oil and gas development in the Ohio River Valley: Empowering impacted residents through community science

Abstract

Belmont County, Ohio is heavily dominated by unconventional oil and gas development that results in high levels of ambient air pollution. Residents here chose to work with a national volunteer network to develop a method of participatory science to answer questions about the association between impact on the health of their community and pollution exposure from the many industrial point sources in the county and surrounding area and river valley. After first directing their questions to the government agencies responsible for permitting and protecting public health, residents noted the lack of detailed data and understanding of the impact of these industries. These residents and environmental advocates are using the resulting science to open a dialogue with the EPA in hopes to ultimately collaboratively develop air quality standards that better protect public health. Results from comparing measurements from a citizen-led participatory low-cost, high-density air pollution sensor network of 35 particulate matter and 25 volatile organic compound sensors against regulatory monitors show low correlations (consistently R2 < 0.55). This network analysis combined with complementary models of emission plumes are revealing the inadequacy of the sparse regulatory air pollution monitoring network in the area, and opening many avenues for public health officials to further verify people’s experiences and act in the interest of residents’ health with enforcement and informed permitting practices. Further, the collaborative best practices developed by this study serve as a launchpad for other community science efforts looking to monitor local air quality in response to industrial growth.

Using Citizen Science to Manage Odour Emissions in National IED Plants: A Systematic Review of the Scientific Literature

“…However, the high number of publications related to the American region as well is not surprising. In fact, the first citizen movements were created in the U.S.A., especially to stress the need of a participatory approach for the oil and gas industry, exploiting the hydraulic fracking of soil [78].…”

“…Participants are generally required to attend community activities (like interviews, paper-based surveys, site inspections, etc.) [77,78] or, in recent times, to fill in online questionnaires, accessible through ordinary devices (like smartphones, tablets, etc.) [67,79].…”

Patterns and drivers of maternal personal exposure to PM2.5 in informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya

“…1). PurpleAir monitors, which employ the Plantower PMS 5003 laser sensors to detect particulate matter, have been used extensively for low-cost monitoring networks, [19][20][21][22] including in Africa, [23][24][25][26] and have demonstrated strong performance when corrected for humidity impacts and calibrated against reference-grade monitoring instrumentation. [27][28][29] The PurpleAir monitoring devices recorded data, including relative humidity, at approximately twominute intervals and the GPS logger recorded every minute.…”

Low-Cost Sensor Performance Intercomparison, Correction Factor Development, and 2+ Years of Ambient PM2.5 Monitoring in Accra, Ghana

“…Globally, the population-weighted mean distance to the nearest air quality monitor is 220 km; monitors are especially sparse in Africa. ,, A recent study has shown that only two out of 15 countries under the economic community of West African States (ECOWAS) monitor PM 2.5 pollution . The dearth of PM 2.5 monitoring sensors across African countries has been attributed to the high capital cost of the instruments, as well as the high installation and maintenance cost. − PM 2.5 monitors such as Teledyne T640 and MetOne BAM-1020 (β Attenuation Monitor), which have US EPA Federal Equivalent Method status, require high installation, operational and maintenance costs, and are thus not practical to install in the large numbers , that would be necessary to capture the strong spatial and temporal variation in cities. This poses challenges for air quality practitioners in Africa to monitor PM 2.5 levels and subsequently develop policies to control and regulate PM 2.5 pollution.…”