Air Quality Monitoring and Response Collaborative

About the Program

Category: County Resiliency (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

The initiative includes the deployment of stationary and handheld air monitors in parks and among pollution control technicians, hazardous materials response teams, and local fire departments to collect real-time ambient air quality data. The data from initiative is helping to bolster a fledgling Community Air Monitoring Program in Harris County and will be foundational to the analysis of a scientific advisory panel that will help flesh out the appropriate threshold levels for contaminants of concern nearest heavy industry. This same panel, led by independent research hub and consisting of academics from broad ranging disciplines like toxicology, law, environmental engineering, and crisis communication, will develop a “playbook” for future disasters – one that will help clarify and unify communication coming from local government to help keep residents safe and informed. A first-of-its-kind $1 million grant from the American Chemistry Council’s Foundation for Chemistry Research & Initiatives laid the foundation for this work, and the commitment of public, private, academic, and community stakeholders to its success have made it a model for other jurisdictions to employ.