Community Observations Network for Air

West Silver Valley Environmental Education Program is Underway for 2019-20

Brett Taylor talking with students at Canyon Elementary School

Brett Taylor, the Education Coordinator for the West Silver Valley Environmental Education Program, introduced the program to Kellogg students. During the Fall, Taylor visited 13 classrooms and presented to nearly 300 students. The presentation included an overview of the program, the significance of particulate air quality issues in the West Silver Valley, and a discussion about air quality research and possible research project ideas.

Wynd Air Quality Tracker

New Air Quality Monitors to be Used in the West Silver Valley

The Wynd Air Quality Tracker will be added to the arsenal of particulate air quality monitors available to students for their air quality research projects. The Wynds are compact, about half the size of a standard deck of cards, accurate, and they work in conjunction with a cell phone app. The Wynd measures the particulate air quality then sends the data, via blue tooth, to the app. The Wynds are much less expensive than most particulate matter monitors so more monitors can be purchased for student use. More monitors equates to more students doing community-based air quality research.

West Silver Valley Air Quality Symposium Date Set

The 2nd Annual West Silver Valley Air Quality Symposium will be held on Wednesday May 20 at the Kellogg Community Center. The symposium will feature student air quality research projects. Students will display their findings in either an oral or poster presentation format. Prizes will be awarded to top projects at each grade level.

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Culminating Air Quality Activities in Kellogg Schools

Students in the Kellogg School District finished the school year by participating in the West Silver Valley Air Quality Coloring Contest and the Kellogg High School Air Quality Symposium. Results from the West Silver Valley Coloring Contest The coloring contest was opened to Kellogg students in grades K-3. Approximately 60 students submitted entries. Entries were evaluated on coloring skill, creativity, overall artistic ability, and quality of writing as demonstrated by the response to the prompt, “How can I help keep the air clean in the West Silver Valley?” The contest was sponsored by the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality and the University of Montana School of Public and Community Health Sciences. Special thanks to Sharon Waldo for creating the coloring contest art work and to the folks at Mountain Colors Yarn in Corvallis, MT who agreed to take on the difficult task of judging the entries. Winners from Canyon Elementary School: Left to right: Samm

West Silver Valley, Idaho, Environmental Science and Health Fair

The West Silver Valley Environmental Education Project hosted an informational display at the Kellogg Environmental Science and Health Fair. The fair was held at the Kellogg Community Center on April 11 and was coordinated by Val Wade from the Kellogg office of Panhandle Health. Attendees included area university, high school and middle school students as well as Kellogg community members. Brett Taylor, from the University of Montana School of Public and Community Health Sciences, and Bridgett Cote, a student at Kellogg High School, led students and instructors through demonstrations on the mechanics of breathing; measuring lung function; and collecting particulate air quality data using a variety of particulate matter, PM, monitors. Bridgett Cote is showing how pig lungs inflate Weather Balloon Launch Students from Jennifer Ferreira's 4th/5th grade combined class at Canyon Elementary School will be participating in a weather balloon launch on May 9. The West Silver

News from the West Silver Valley in northern Idaho, USA

Dan Smith, from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, Bridgett Cote, a senior at Kellogg High School, and Tony Ward and Brett Taylor from the University of Montana School of Public and Community Health Sciences deployed 28 ODIN outdoor air quality monitors throughout the Kellogg, Idaho area. The ODINs were supplied by Ian Longley and Gus Olivares, air quality researchers with the New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmosphere - NIWA. The monitors were deployed at the end of January and will be recovered during the week of March 18. This time period represents winter temperature inversion season where many of the local homes rely on wood burning for heat. Data collected from the monitors will be used by students from the Kellogg School District as part of their air quality research projects. The deployment also provides NIWA researchers with data about ODIN performance and reliability in cold climates with short winter days. Kellogg has had a cold, snowy Febru

Community Observations Network for Air - Montana and Idaho

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