The air looks pretty good in the area — nothing like that orange haze produced by the forest fires in Canada in 2023 — but how good is it really?

Members of Save Carbon County want to know, so they purchased 18 Purple Air monitors to deploy throughout the area.

Linda Christman, the president of Save Carbon County, said the monitors cost about $6,000 and were purchased with a grant from the Center for Health, Environment and Justice, a second grant from the Mountain Watershed Association and a generous donation from a member of Save Carbon County.

Christman explained that the monitors can detect particulate pollution levels, including microscopic particulates of 2.5 micrometers, which are considered to be the most dangerous to human health.

“They get lodged in your lungs,” she said.

The interest in the area’s air quality came about because of concern about possible pollutants from power plants. With large warehouses being built throughout the area, air pollution from truck traffic added to the organization’s concern.

“We want to raise awareness about our air quality in Carbon County,” Christman said.

The monitors will also provide an alert to the presence of volatile organic compounds pollution in the air. VOCs include benzene, gasoline and other chemical solvents.

Currently, the Environmental Protection Agency doesn’t have any air monitors in Carbon County, Christman said. The nearest monitor is in Allentown.

“Our program is the only source of data on air quality in our county,” she said.

Christman said that Carbon County is rated as an attainment area by the EPA, except for the category of ozone pollution. This rating means that the county’s air quality meets EPA standards. But since the EPA doesn’t measure for particulates or VOCs in the county, Christman considers the EPA’s rating flawed due to lack of information in the county.

“By deploying these monitors, we will provide accurate real time information about the county’s air quality,” she said. “We hope that this information will mean air quality will be a factor as decision-makers consider projects like tire-burning in Nesquehoning and warehouses in our county.”

One of the locations of the new air monitors is at the Lehigh Gap Nature Center near Slatington. It is installed on the deck behind the center. The deck has a view of the Lehigh River, and the traffic on Route 248 makes it the perfect location to detect pollutants from vehicle traffic.

“We thought the Lehigh Gap would be a great place to put a monitor,” Christman said.

The nature center partnered with Save Carbon County to apply for the grant to purchase the air monitors.

“We are all about educating to public,” said Chad Schwartz, the executive director of the Lehigh Gap Nature Center. “Air monitors provide a free resource for the public to learn about the quality of the air where they live.”

Schwartz said that if while monitoring the air, someone notices a pickup in pollution, then he or she can notify the center or Save Carbon County.

“It empowers residents to take action,” he said.

The air monitor was installed in early September and levels fluctuate throughout the day.

For instance, on Oct. 31, the air quality index at the center peaked at 114 at 7 a.m., but was back down to 11 by 10:45 a.m. on Nov. 1 on a scale of 0 to 300, according to the map on Purple Air.

A level between 101 and 150 on the index is considered to pose a health risk to sensitive groups with exposure to that level for 24 hours, but not to the general public.

Schwartz said that being so close to the highway systems can make the particulate counts go up at the center. The pollution comes from the vehicle’s exhaust.

“Diesel engines still produce quite a bit of pollution,” he said.

People interested in the data can view it in real time online by going to purpleair.com and checking the map. The map shows each location of a monitors.

Save Carbon County has a few air monitors left if members of the public would like to participate the monitoring the air in their location.

“We’d like to get more out there so we can cover the entire county,” Christman said.

Christman said people can either buy a monitor online at purpleair.com or contact Save Carbon County to get one.

The monitors cost $329, which include $289 for the monitor itself plus $40 for the power source plug and cord.

Save Carbon County is using the flex model and can help with internet registration. Call 570-676-2644 for additional information and assistance.