UPDATE: EPA To Study Air Quality At Two Oregon Schools

UPDATE:  We’ve added new information from the EPA and Lincoln County Schools.

A new nationwide study of air quality around schools will include two sites in Oregon, the Harriet Tubman Academy in Portland and Toledo Elementary in Lincoln County. They’re among 62 schools chosen for the study by the Environmental Protection Agency.  Representatives from both school districts say they’re glad to take part.

But parents and students may be wondering why were these schools chosen, and what does that mean about air pollution on the campuses.

The answers are not simple.

The genesis of this study was a story published last December in USA Today.  The newspaper used computer models to identify 435 schools where toxic air pollution could be a problem.  That prompted the EPA to conduct its own computer modeling, plus gather information from state and local officials.  From that, it drew up this new list of 62 schools it says deserve further investigation.

Madonna Narvaez with EPA Seattle says they tried to find the “right mix” of schools representing different types of environments.  Toledo Elementary was chosen, she says, because it’s near a Georgia-Pacific mill.  Harriet Tubman made the list because it represents an urban school with nearby industry and heavy traffic on I-5.

In the USA Today story, both Oregon schools are in the bottom 9% of air quality rankings, meaning more than 90% of schools it studied have cleaner air.

Matt Shelby of Portland Public Schools says the district welcomes the EPA study. “Anything they can do,” he says, to improve air quality at schools, “We’ll support 100%.”

“We want to be involved,” says Rich Belloni, Director of Support Services for Lincoln County Schools.  “If there’s a problem, we don’t want our kids there.”  Belloni says Toledo High School is looking at ways to incorporate air quality measurements into its science classes.

The EPA’s Narvaez says it will be at least 60-90 days before the monitoring equipment is up and running.  The study period runs about two months and follow up studies are possible.

Results from the study should start appearing on the EPA “Assessing Outdoor Air Near Schools” website starting this summer. The site is also a good place to start if you want more information.