Ambient Air Monitoring Site

Ambient Air Monitoring Site. City of Philadelphia Community Health Services (CHS). , On this site at 500 South Broad Street, the City of Philadelphia, through its Department of Public Health, Air Management Services (AMS), monitors the quality of the ambient air. this site is especially important because it measures pollution not just from air circulating through the city, but it also captures pollution emanating from motor vehicles on Broad Street, one of the most heavily traveled corridors in Philadelphia., Data from this site is routinely submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) national air monitoring database., Equipment housed here measures multiple pollutants, including ozone-forming compounds called Volatile Organic Compounds and Oxides of Nitrogen. Also measured are particulate matter, or soot, heavy metals such as nickel, and toxic air contaminants that can contribute to increased cancer risk over time. Air pollution can also contribute to a myriad of other health problems, particularly cardiovascular disease and respiratory ailments such as asthma. Monitoring has been conducted on this site since 1982., Like many large cities, Philadelphia is currently not in attainment with federal air quality goals set out in the Clean Air Act. You can assist our City in meeting these goals by driving less, reducing your energy consumption at home and in the workplace, and choosing local products that don't require long-distance shipping., [Caption:] , At this site a Particulate Matter sampling unit like this one takes in air and collects fine particles of soot and dust to determine their concentration in the air we breathe. Other pollutants are also monitored here.