By rdnewsNOW staff

Air Quality

Drayton Valley air monitoring station set to open

Jul 12, 2019 | 7:08 AM

West Central Airshed Society (WCAS) will be celebrating the launch of the new Drayton Valley Air Monitoring Station on Friday, July 12 at 9:00 am.

Joining WCAS representatives will be Mark Smith, MLA Drayton Valley-Devon, Michael Doerksen, Mayor of Drayton Valley and Bart Guyon, Reeve of Brazeau County. The station is located in the field on the east side of 54 Street, at approximately 49 Avenue in Drayton Valley.

Officials say the Drayton Valley station will provide air quality data to inform the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI). The AQHI is a simplified scale between 1 and 10 to help determine air quality impacts on human health. The higher the number, the greater the health risk associated with air quality. Health messages are customized to each category for both the general population and ‘at risk’ populations.

“Drayton Valley is an important centre within our Airshed and WCAS wanted the surrounding community to benefit from the AQHI system, which is particularly important in times of poor air quality, such as recent smoky days from wildfires,” says Gary Redmond, WCAS Executive Director, in a news release. “By adding additional monitoring technology, the Drayton Valley station is now able to provide an accurate and current AQHI number for the area.”

The AQHI can be found by downloading the AQHI Canada app or on a number of websites including WCAS and Alberta Environment and Parks.

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The primary mandate of WCAS is to monitor the ambient, outdoor air quality and ensure the data is available to all stakeholders, including the public.

WCAS was formed in the Drayton Valley area in the early 1990s as an innovative, collaborative approach between industry, community and government.

The WCAS region has expanded over the years and now stretches from the Wabamun Lake area west to the B.C. Border, and includes the centres of Drayton Valley, Edson, Hinton, Jasper and Whitecourt.

WCAS also does educational outreach thanks in large part to support from Alberta Environment and Parks.

(With files from West Central Airshed Society)