DETROIT (WXYZ) — Wayne County Executives announced the launch of a Countywide Air Quality Network.
The county is partnering with a local startup called JustAir to monitor air pollution data and use that information to inform the public and hold polluters accountable.
“My concern is being able to breathe,” said Vivian a Detroit resident. “And the burning eyes. Other than that,...but that’s enough right there.”
Yes, diminished air quality is that simple for someone like Vivian.
“I have asthma,” said Vivian.
WXYZ’’s Mike Duffy asked, “And what’s it like on days like today?”
“Rough,” said Vivian.
“What happens?” asked Duffy.
“I start coughing and coughing and coughing. Then I got to use my inhaler which I don’t like to use,” said Vivian.
I asked her what she thinks about Wayne County launching an air quality monitoring network.
“That’s a good thing that they’re investing that money for the air quality,” said Vivian.
“Air quality kind of vacuums in, hits the sensors and then it’s sent to a cloud and that cloud information is then presented,” said Darren Riley, CEO of JustAir.
Riley is the co-founder and CEO of the Michigan-based startup JustAir. He’s showing me one of the many monitors the company will use to collect information around the county.
“Today we hear about ozone, particulates, etcetera. But what if there’s a bad SO2 day? We don’t know. We may smell rotten eggs in the air, but how do you really measure that? So that’s what we’ll be measuring, certain pollutants that go unchecked,” said Riley.
This project is personal for Riley because he developed asthma after living in Southwest Detroit. He says he co-founded JustAir to help people across the country breathe cleaner, safer air.
“What makes us special is not just the instrumentation, the data, it's how do we be so singularly focused to make sure that is being used over time. And it’s through community relationships, community building. Our work is founded in the community, rooted in the community, people who have that trust and that context. That I could walk into my barbershop, and everyone knows what the air quality is,” said Riley.
He hopes that soon, someone like his grandmother could easily check the daily air quality data and be given steps she can take to mitigate issues.
I also talked to Dr. Abdul El-Sayed Director of the Wayne County Department of Health, Human and Veteran Services. He explained to me how the program will work in Wayne County.
“What we’re doing is building a system of 100 air quality monitors fixed to streetlights and lamp posts as well as 500 mobile air quality monitors,” said Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, Director, Wayne County HHVS.
This includes things like monitors on inhalers and kids' backpacks to get.
He told me there’s a great disparity between communities that have good air quality and bad air quality in Wayne County.
“If you look at the 48217 community. They have, by far, the worst air quality in the state, one of the worst air sheds in the entire country. Again, if you look at why, you see there’s a concentration of corporate polluters in that space,” said Dr. El-Sayed.
While air quality data is currently collected by the state and federal government, he says it’s only for specific requirements for state and federal law and isn’t as transparent as it could be.
“Having our own source of data allows us and hold the whole system accountable,” said El-Sayed.
Funding comes from the American Rescue Plan Act.
How long will this be funded? What kind of funding are we talking about?
“So, it’s a three-year project right now, 2.7-million-dollar project,” said Dr. El-Sayed.
