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URBAN
COMMUNITY AIR TOXICS MONITORING
PROJECT, PATERSON CITY, NJ
(UCAMPP) 2010
PROJECT
DESCRIPTION
The overall objective of the Urban
Community Air Toxics Monitoring
Project, Paterson City, NJ (UCAMPP)
is to obtain data which will assist
the NJDEP in formulating risk
reduction strategies related to
air toxics. It is well established
that air quality is a health concern
nationwide because concentrations
of air toxics are above health
benchmarks for most air toxics.
Presently, we monitor air toxics
by placing monitors so they capture
general population exposures.
The USEPA recognizes there are
limited data on specific geographic
locations, such as Paterson, so
they decided to solicit for projects
that will collect community based
air toxics information. UCAMPP
will determine which pollutants
are a health concern in an urban
environment, where they come from,
and then identify risk reduction
strategies. This will be accomplished
through the characterization of
local air toxics related to different
land use patterns in a highly
industrialized urban community.
Air toxics monitors will be strategically
placed at monitoring stations
in community-oriented locations
that will capture industrial,
commercial and mobile source dominated
emissions. Two of the monitoring
stations will be located at Paterson
public schools allowing UCAMPP
to measure the community's potential
for exposure.
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UCAMPP
will:
1) characterize the spatial resolution
of local air toxics;
2) determine concentration gradients;
3) identify source signatures from
various land use(s);
4) evaluate modeling results using
monitoring data;
5) field test new sampling and analyses
techniques for air toxics that are
currently difficult to quantify;
6) characterize the concerns of an
Environmental Justice (EJ) community;
7) provide information and develop
tools so that the New Jersey Department
of Environmental Protection (NJ DEP)
and the local community can better
address exposure and risk issues related
to air toxics; and
8) identify risk reduction strategies.
This study will serve as a pilot project
and provide valuable information that
can be applied to other communities
around the state and the nation.
Paterson City (Paterson) in Passaic
County, NJ, was chosen for this project
because it is a mixed-use urban community
with high population density and has
all the characteristics of an environmental
justice community. The NJDEP has existing
programs that are addressing some
of the air toxics problems in this
community including a Compliance &
Enforcement Initiative, an air toxics
risk evaluation (a NJDEP contribution
to UCAMPP) and a PM2.5 monitor. The
NJDEP has committed to providing additional
resources, e.g., the staff time needed
for data management/assessment and
a portion of sample collection and
analyses.
UCAMPP identified
a suite of air toxics from an initial
NJ emissions inventory and from
the targeted compounds from the
grant solicitation. Three monitoring
sites have been identified which
target specific land use types,
i.e., industrial, commercial and
mobile. A background site has also
been identified. Sampling frequency
will be every six days over the
course of a year and is slated to
begin either in November of 2005.
The NJDEP will partner
with the Environmental Occupational
Health Science Institute (EOHSI).
Researchers at EOSHI have developed
new and advanced techniques for
measuring air toxics e.g., acrolein
and hexavalent chromium. EOHSI will
donate some of the equipment and
the personnel necessary for sample
collection, a portion of the sample/data
analyses, and a small pilot study
to field-test their new methods.
UCAMPP is also partnering
with the Paterson Public Schools
District (District). T he
District has agreed to allow UCAMPP
to place air toxics monitoring equipment
at two of their public schools,
i.e., PS#2 & PS#10, to capture
mobile and industrial source oriented
emissions, respectively. These two
locations are nestled in residential
areas and will serve as a platform
that will allow the NJDEP to determine
what the citizens residing and working
in the neighborhood around the schools
are being exposed to. High school
student interns will participate
as part of their science education.
Dr. Bonanno will incorporate an
educational component for the students
which will explain what air toxics
are, health effects, how they are
regulated, risk reduction strategies
and employment opportunities.
This study will
benefit many different areas including
but not limited to:
• technical/scientific (e.g.,
the field testing of new techniques
and analytic procedures);
• regulatory (e.g., evaluation
of modeling results with monitoring
data);
• enforcement (e.g., possible
identification of facilities out
of compliance) and community-based,
rather than facility-based, characterization
of air toxics;
• social (e.g., through community
outreach and education, addressing
the concerns of an Environmental
Justice Community, employment opportunities
for students); and
• risk reduction.
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Office
of Science
Dr. Gary A. Buchanan, Manager
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| Mailing
Address:
Mail
code 428-01, P.O. Box 420
P.O. Box 420
Trenton, NJ 0862
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Office
Location:
428
East State St., 1st floor
Trenton, NJ 08625 |
Phone:
(609) 984-6070
Fax: (609) 292-7340
For Information regarding
this site, please contact Terri
Tucker. |
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