Local residents, dignitaries and Fort Air Partnership (FAP) members gathered in the sunshine June 16 to celebrate the opening of FAP’s newest continuous air monitoring station in Gibbons. A ribbon cutting and cake followed speeches by town and provincial elected officials, and an official opening address by FAP Chair Keith Purves.
“This station at Gibbons is a positive addition to our network. We look forward to having greater involvement with residents in this community,” said Purves. He explained that the Gibbons station is part of a national information network and that station data enables a current and forecast Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) to be calculated for Gibbons.
The Gibbons station is located just south of the Town of Gibbon’s administration building at 50 Avenue and 48 Street and was activated in February. The station monitors and collects data on seven substances (sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, oxides of nitrogen and particulate matter) as well as weather information. The public can view a near real time live date feed for any substance tracked by the Gibbons station, or any of FAP’s other continuous air monitoring stations.
North West Redwater Partnership provided funds for the purchase of the Gibbons station and the first year of operation. The station’s on-going operation will be funded by the Northeast Capital Industrial Association, of which North West Redwater Partnership is a member. The Government of Alberta provided a particulate matter analyzer to enable AQHI calculations.
