New Ozone Monitoring Site in Uxbridge: MassDEP has installed a new ozone monitoring station at Blackstone Valley Heritage State Park. This site is meant to provide a "snapshot" of ozone levels in the south central portion of Massachusetts, which tends to be affected by air pollution transported from the New York/New Jersey area. The station has been measuring meteorological conditions since November 2008 and will begin ozone monitoring in April 2009.

Upgraded Fine Particulate (PM2.5) Monitors : MassDEP has installed upgraded continuous PM2.5 monitors at its North End and Roxbury sites in Boston and at its Liberty Street site in Springfield.  These monitors may provide data of sufficient precision and accuracy to be used both for daily PM2.5 forecasting and for the more rigorous task of assessing whether the state is meeting federal PM2.5 standards.  Currently, two different types of monitoring technology are needed to complete these tasks: continuous monitors for real-time measurement/forecasting and more labor-intensive intermittent (every 3rd day) samplers to determine compliance with federal standards. Now EPA is allowing the use of upgraded continuous monitors for both purposes.  MassDEP plans to install more of the upgraded monitors in 2009.  You can learn more about the progress in installing these monitors from AAB's annual

For additional information about these improvements to the Massachusetts ambient air quality monitoring network, contact the MassDEP Air Assessment Branch.