Pols push airport air quality monitoring

With two of the country’s biggest airports in LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy (JFK) International located in Queens, local politicians are once again pushing legislation requiring the regular monitoring of air quality in the areas surrounding the airport.
The legislation, first introduced by Senator John Sabini earlier this year, would require that Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) install air-monitoring equipment within a one-mile radius of both airports. The equipment would include a photochemical assessment monitoring station and national ambient toxic trend station as well as detect ozone and fine particle pollution, considered the most deadly of air pollutants.
“The data gathered by the equipment and procedures mandated in my bill can have a direct and positive impact on the air quality near LaGuardia and JFK,” Sabini said.
In addition to installing the equipment, the legislation would require DEC officials to meet with site engineers, community organizations and elected officials to update them on the status of the of the air-quality monitoring.
“This bill doesn’t just put equipment on the ground,” Sabini said. “It ensures that the people responsible for the air quality near airports are communicating and working together towards a cleaner environment and better health.”
According to a study by the Natural Resources Defense Council, LaGuardia and JFK are among the top producers of ground-level ozone and smog in Queens, and some of the affects can be alarming. Children in Queens suffer from asthma and other respiratory problems in disproportionate numbers, especially those living in proximity to airports.
“If we monitor the air quality here, we’ll have vital data to help improve it,” said Borough President Helen Marshall, who joined Sabini to support his bill at a press conference near LaGuardia Airport on Monday, June 19. “For more than 30 years, I have tried to do all I can to clean the air around this area and this bill is critical in advancing that.”