Edgar Mendoza installs an air quality monitor in Palomas.
Our U.S.-Mexico border region of Chihuahua-New Mexico is now bejeweled with six new air quality monitors. Border Partners is currently participating in a study of border air quality conducted by New Mexico State University, funded through a research grant administrated by NMSU Professor David DuBois.
The devices are located on electric poles 10 feet above the ground and will remain in Palomas for the duration of the study. The monitors’ automatic timer collects dust and other air pollutants at 24 hour intervals. Those filters are then collected and replaced every other day, a total of 16 times. Border Partners will service the monitors: collecting and replacing the filters, then delivering them to the researchers.
Palomas residents Marisol Guillen (a Border Partners promoter) and Edgar Mendoza assisted with the installation of the air quality monitors and will continue to help with the project’s data collection. Air quality is also being monitored on the U.S. side of the borderline in Columbus, NM.
The information that this study yields will help researchers assess the air quality of the border. Because border crossing traffic is funneled into our area, more air particulates could be concentrated here, too. Several of the Palomas monitors are located in the stockyards area to assess the impact of livestock manure on air quality.
Marisol Guillen dons gloves to collect scientific data on air quality.
The quality of the air we breathe directly affects our health. Participating in this project will help us better understand our border’s environment and the special needs we may have as a result of our area’s international role.
