Prior work: In Summer 2021, members of our team along with Extension Specialists (Ragan Adams and Dennis Kaan) developed and deployed a network of five low-cost ozone sensors (MOOS for Metal Oxide ozone Sensor; see figure to the left) in Fort Collins, CO and the Colorado Eastern Plains. The study was performed to evaluate MOOS measurements against colocated reference monitors and also to quantify the ozone pollution differences between urban (Fort Collins) and rural (Eastern Plains) regions.
Scope and outcomes: As a follow up to our 2021 study, we will deploy two to three of the MOOS to several sites in mountain river valleys in Eagle, Pitkin, and Garfield counties. Glenda Wentworth as the County Director for Eagle County Extension will facilitate collaboration with local personnel and outreach programs to better understand locations for air pollution monitoring and communication of air pollution datas. The field deployments and data gathered during this project will be valuable to our team’s research for two reasons. First, these data will add to our growing database and contribute to a better understanding of the ozone levels in mountain regions and their relation to more heavily-monitored urban locations. And, second, these data will help with the translation and communication of the ozone pollution problem in mountain regions to local communities and residents.
