SLEA announces air monitoring improvements

The Sarnia-Lambton Environmental Association (SLEA) is pleased to announce a series of capital upgrades aimed at modernizing and improving the region’s air monitoring network.

Working with RWDI, a world-leader in environmental engineering, SLEA is making upgrades to all eight of its existing stations located throughout the Sarnia-Lambton area, while adding a new station near Sir John Moore School in Corunna.

All eight SLEA air monitoring stations will be receiving technical upgrades that will see them outfitted with new data acquisition technology and reporting functionality that will enhance data and analytic capture, improving station reports and trend analysis.

New technology being added will also see a wireless communication upgrade and addition of a new more secure server that will protect the network from cyber attacks and offer enhanced ability for SLEA members to generate reports.

This upgrade will also see three existing air monitoring stations see physical upgrades as well.

The existing Scott Road Station is being decommissioned and will be replaced by a new station, housed in the SLEA Air Monitoring Trailer (pictured below). The AirPointer currently at Scott Road Station will be moved to Sombra Line and will be replaced by a new SO2 Analyzer.

A SLEA Air Monitoring Station currently located at Riverbend will be moved to a brand-new location near the CAER Emergency Siren on St. Clair Boulevard, adjacent to Sir John Moore School. This new location was presented to, and endorsed by, the St. Clair Township Council on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. Work is now beginning on the construction of a new station for commissioning at the new site in early 2022.

These upgrades, along with additions to the number of stations in the network, are adding to a more comprehensive approach to protecting the health of the airshed in the Sarnia-Lambton area.

“The RWDI team is excited to be collaborating with the SLEA Technical Committee on this project. We look forward to helping SLEA enhance the network and improve the reliability of the system’s monitoring data and data quality,” RWDI said about the upgrades.

SLEA Air Monitoring systems feed into the regional Clean Air Sarnia and Area (CASA) website. CASA brings together representatives from industry, government, and the community to recommend and implement strategies to assess and improve air quality in Lambton County.

For more information on the SLEA Air Monitoring Network, visit the Clean Air Sarnia and Area website at www.cleanairsarniaandarea.com.