Could Satellite Data Help Some Communities Monitor Air Pollution?

IN SPACE - JULY 2: In this handout provided by NASA from the the Earth-orbiting International Space Station, weather system Arthur travels up the east coast of the United States in the Atlantic Ocean near Florida on July 2, 2014 in space. The robotic arm of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System or Canadarm2 is seen at upper right. According to reports, Arthur has begun moving steadily northward at around 5 kt. and the tropical storm is expected to strike the North Carolina Outer Banks over the Fourth of July holiday. (Photo by NOAA via Getty Images)

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Data from NASA satellites in space could help communities without ground-based monitors better track air pollution, according to two new studies.

The reports argue satellite-derived data around fine particulate matter, which is sometimes known as PM2.5, could complement the existing U.S. air quality monitoring network and quantify pollution levels in counties where there are no air quality monitors.

They add this is significant because nearly 80% of counties do not have ground-based monitors for particle pollution.

The first study uses a new approach to identify areas with high levels of PM2.5 pollution using satellite-derived data and suggests new methods of analysing such data can help improve insights into air quality across the country.

The second sought to understand where and why satellite-derived data and ground-based monitor data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency aligned or conflicted.

It found counties with frequent wildfires, mountains, deserts, few monitors, or either low or high pollution levels were more likely to show greater differences between the two datasets.

The reports’ authors are leading air quality experts from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Washington University in St. Louis and the American Lung Association.

Dr. Tracey Holloway, lead author and a professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison, said scientists have been developing near surface level PM2.5 datasets, which combine satellite data, computer models, and ground-based observations for many years now, in an interview.

Dr. Holloway added these datasets have already been used in a wide range of health applications and academic studies but have not often been used by policy-makers, who are looking at tackling air pollution.

She told me most air quality policies are designed around ground-based monitors, but there are many counties, which either have very few monitors or none at all.

“There is a cornucopia of science and data available to be used by air quality managers, communities, industry groups, nonprofits,” said Dr. Holloway.

“Most of it is freely available online but is for the most part it is being underutilized by audiences who could most benefit from this work.”

Dr. Holloway said one of the reasons the data is underutilized is because it has been developed for scientific communities, and there needs to be more dialogue with groups like the American Lung Association to understand how it can be used further.

“Sometimes there's a feeling the scientists do their job and then they put the data on the shelf and that's all they need to do,” added Dr. Holloway.

“Whereas, if we understand what users need and what they want, we help make sure our science is getting all the way into the decision-making process.”

The reports’ co-author, Kevin Stewart, director of environmental health at the American Lung Association, said satellite-derived data can help inform decision makers and ensure their communities are being properly protected, in an interview.

Stewart added the Association is also keen to hear from decision makers about the kind of information and the formats which will help them.

“We are very happy to help carry this message forward, draw people's attention to this kind of work, and use it to help inform public health,” said Stewart.

“We at the Lung Association are excited that satellite-derived data may help us say more in our “State of the Air” report about air quality for the 100 million people living in counties that don’t have ground-level monitoring,” he added.

“Though the results based on satellite data are only estimates, the correlation with ground-level monitoring data is strong."

The national manager of health justice at advocacy group Moms Clean Air Force, Almeta Cooper, said as an African American mother, she welcomed the news that EPA and local neighborhoods have an additional tool to measure dangerous particle pollution with NASA satellite data, in an email.

Cooper added there are few, if any, land-based air quality monitors currently in many under-resourced communities, which bear some of the greatest health burdens from this kind of pollution.

“Expanded access to air quality data will empower more families with information they need to protect their health, and to demand stronger air pollution protections,” she said.