In mid-July, as wildfires ravaged parts of Canada, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health issued a wildfire smoke alert, informing residents of the impact wildfire smoke was having on communities in Massachusetts.
“This creates hazy conditions and raises fine-particle pollution levels in some areas,” the release stated.
In Belmont, there is just one air-quality sensor that compiles data for the town. That’s why a group of Girl Scouts, with the guidance of longtime Belmont resident Dr. Carl Dahlberg, is working together to place five additional sensors around the community.
“Air quality really affects children and seniors, and Belmont has a lot of [those populations],” said Amelia Rodehurst. “It feels like something that should already be here and if not, we should address that problem.”
According to PurpleAir, the company providing the sensors, the only active sensor in Belmont is on Broad Street near Chilton Street.
Dahlberg learned about a grant available from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. After reaching out to a number of organizations around town, he partnered with Girl Scout Troop 70110. Together, they applied for the grant and were awarded five sensors for placement around town.
“It’s nice we get to do this, because it means people trust us with stuff like this,” said Brynn Halloran, one of the seven Girl Scouts involved in the project. All are rising seventh graders at Belmont Middle School.
Dahlberg and the scouts recently presented their plans to the Board of Health. Sensors should arrive in Belmont by mid-August or early September, he said.
The girls described the sensors as cylinders the size of a soda can. They will need to be placed between seven and 30 feet above the ground where there is access to electricity and 180 degrees of airflow. The sensors will be active for at least one year, but can stay online as long as a host is willing to have it on their property.
“I think this is a really helpful project for Belmont and people from Boston in general because it can help … [residents] see if it’s safe to go out on a walk today, or if you should stay inside or if you can do activities outside,” said Girl Scout Harlow Marquez.
“I think this is especially important with the wildfires in Canada,” added Scout Mary Beaudoin. “It would be really nice to know what the air quality is if that happened, especially for a specific area.”
Between now and the arrival of the devices, the girls will reach out to area organizations and businesses about hosting the sensors. They considered one of the schools or the library as possible locations. Residents are also invited to host a sensor, which is expected to cost only about the same per year in electricity as a nightlight.
Dahlberg said Belmont residents interested in hosting an air quality sensor can email their name, address, and phone number to belmontairsensors@dahlberg.com. Girl Scouts will follow up with each person this fall to confirm their site meets the technical requirements.
