DES Announces Official Opening of Air Monitoring Station at Moose Hill School, Londonderry
LONDONDERRY, N.H. – The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES) today hosted a ribbon cutting and site tour of the Londonderry Air Monitoring Station. This state-of-the-art facility was built using energy efficient siting, design and lighting.
The air monitoring station at the Moose Hill School in Londonderry is considered DES' flagship air pollution monitoring station and the first to incorporate solar energy to power monitoring equipment. This station is part of a National Core multi-pollutant air monitoring network designed to provide data at lower detection limits, as well as enhanced forecasting and reporting of air quality conditions to the public. DES worked closely with EPA to carefully select this site for its central proximity to the highly populated, southeastern suburbs of New Hampshire. This site lies in the air pollution transport corridor that crosses the southern portion of the state.
Pollutants being monitored at this site include ozone, small particle pollution, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide. Meteorological conditions are also being recorded, including outside temperature, wind speed, wind direction, rainfall, barometric pressure, and relative humidity.
Collecting air pollution data is required by the Federal Clean Air Act. The state has been tracking air pollution through its network of air monitoring stations since the 1960s. DES and other organizations use air monitoring data to determine the status of New Hampshire's air pollution levels, predict air pollution episodes, enact protective measures and warnings, and protect public health and the natural environment.
"Today, DES operates a technologically advanced network of air pollution monitoring stations that operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year in order to provide us with vital real time data on the quality of our air," said DES Commissioner Tom Burack. "Maintaining good air quality protects New Hampshire's environment and the public's health, which are inextricably linked to our state's economic well being."
For more information on this event, please contact Jim Martin at DES (603) 271-3710 James.Martin@des.nh.gov. For more information about air quality in New Hampshire, call the Air Quality Information Line at (603) 935-SMOG or visit www.airquality.nh.gov.
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