Promote Pt

DESCRIPTION:THE PURPOSE OF THIS COMPETITIVELY SELECTED AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN (ARP) FUNDED GRANT TO PROTECT PT IS TO CONDUCT AMBIENT AIR MONITORING OF POLLUTANTS OF GREATEST CONCERN IN COMMUNITIES WITH ENVIRONMENTAL AND HEALTH OUTCOME DISPARITIES STEMMING FROM POLLUTION AND THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. THE OVERALL OBJECTIVE OF THIS PROPOSAL IS TO ADDRESS THE LACK OF KNOWLEDGE ABOUT FOSSIL FUEL AIR EMISSIONS AND THEIR IMPACT ON QUALITY OF LIFE IN WESTMORELAND AND ALLEGHENY COUNTIES IN PENNSYLVANIA. THIS PROJECT ALIGNS WITH THE EPA'S 2022-2026 STRATEGIC PLAN, AS IT'S DESIGNED TO REDUCE EMISSIONS OF OZONE-FORMING POLLUTANTS, PARTICULATE MATTER, AND AIR TOXICS AND ADDRESS ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ISSUES FACING SOUTHWEST PENNSYLVANIA COMMUNITIES. THIS PROJECT SEEKS TO EXPAND PROTECT PT'S AIR MONITORING EFFORTS IN THREE LOCATIONS: THE WESTMORELAND SANITARY LANDFILL (WSL) AT 901 TYROL BLVD BELLE VERNON, PA 15012, MONESSEN COKE PLANT AT 345 DONNER AVE, MONESSEN, PA 15062, AND THE PENNECO SEDAT 3A WASTEWATER INJECTION WELL (PLUM INJECTION WELL) AT 1815 OLD LEECHBURG RD, NEW KENSINGTON, PA 15068. ACTIVITIES:THE FUNDS WILL BE USED TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY AND LOCAL EFFORTS TO MONITOR THEIR OWN AIR QUALITY AND TO PROMOTE AIR QUALITY MONITORING PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN COMMUNITIES AND TRIBAL, STATE, AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS THAT: LEVERAGE EXISTING AIR QUALITY EXPERTISE, EXPAND USE OF COMMUNITY MONITORING GROUPS AND OTHER APPROACHES THAT GIVE THE COMMUNITY A VOICE IN THE MONITORING OF THE AIR QUALITY, AND BUILD A FOUNDATION OF TRUSTING RELATIONSHIPS AND ENHANCED UNDERSTANDING FROM WHICH SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS TO COMMUNITY AIR POLLUTION PROBLEMS CAN BE FOUND. SPECIFICALLY, THE ACTIVITIES THAT THE RECIPIENT WILL PERFORM INCLUDE AN EVALUATION OF POLLUTION SOURCES, EDUCATION, TRAINING, REPORTING, AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH. THE RECIPIENT WILL DO THIS IN MULTIPLE WAYS INCLUDING EVALUATING THE POLLUTION SOURCES AND CURRENT LOCATIONS OF AIR MONITORS. THE RECIPIENT PLANS TO DO COMMUNITY OUTREACH TO TEACH RESIDENTS ABOUT MONITORING AND REPORTING OF POLLUTION ON THE PROTECT PT APP. UNDER THIS PROPOSAL SOME RESIDENTS WILL ALSO BE TRAINED IN ACQUIRING AIR QUALITY SAMPLES. THE RECIPIENT WILL ALSO HOST FREE WORKSHOPS ON AIR POLLUTION.SUBRECIPIENT:EHP'S AIRVIEW COLLECTS DATA FROM DEPLOYED COMMUNITY MONITORS TO PROVIDE: THE MONITOR FEED VISUALIZATION ALLOWS RESIDENTS TO SEE THE OUTPUT OF THEIR MONITORS IN AN INTERACTIVE WAY. THIS VISUALIZATION ADDS ADDITIONAL CONTEXT, INCLUDING HOW WEATHER CONDITIONS AFFECT POPULATION DISPERSION ON AN HOURLY BASIS AND THE OPERATING STATUS OF A LOCAL POLLUTION EMITTER OF CONCERN, WHERE APPLICABLE; EXPOSURE MEASURE GENERATES MEASURES OF THE POLLUTION EXPOSURES, COMPARES THEM TO OTHER EHP MONITORING LOCATIONS AND APPLICABLE EPA STANDARDS TO HELP COMMUNITIES UNDERSTAND WHETHER THEY SHOULD BE CONCERNED; IMPACT ANALYSIS IDENTIFIES THE LIKELY SOURCE OF POLLUTION. THIS TOOL USES WEATHER DATA FROM THE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION AND THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TO SHOW RECORDED POLLUTION LEVELS AT THE MONITOR LOCATION, BASED ON DIFFERENT COMBINATIONS OF WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION. CREATE LAB WILL PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN THE ENVIRONMENTAL SENSING DATA REPOSITORY (ESDR) INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICE FOR AGGREGATION OF AIR MONITOR DATA INCLUDING THE EHP'S AIRVIEW ANALYSIS. CREATE LAB WILL ALSO MAINTAIN THE WEBSITES, VOC.CREATELAB.ORG AND ENVIRONMENTALDATA.ORG AS PUBLICLY ACCESSIBLE DATA ACCESS POINTS. LAB STAFF WILL ADD NEW SENSORS ACQUIRED THROUGH THE GRANT INTO THESE PLATFORMS, AND ITERATE ON PLATFORMS BASED ON COMMUNITY, PARTNER, AND GOVERNMENT STAKEHOLDER FEEDBACK. LASTLY, CREATE LAB WILL ENGAGE PARTNERS IN THE PROJECT AND CREATE TAILORED ANALYSES AND VISUALIZATIONS THAT CAN ENHANCE REPORTS AND ANALYSIS, SUCH AS FORWARD DISPERSION AND BACK TRAJECTORY MODELING. THE RECIPIENT INTENDS TO ISSUE SUBAWARD AGREEMENTS TO ITS PARTNERS IN COMPLIANCE WITH APPENDIX A OF EPA'S SUBAWARD POLICY.OUTCOMES:THE ANTICIPATED DELIVERABLE