Purple Air Warnings Not Enough
If late fall fires start up again after the October deluge, Alameda County will already have smoke alert protocols in place. The county developed specific thresholds and delivery systems for alerts over the past two years. “Our geography creates a particular need for us to address smoke,” says county sustainability project manager Sarah Church. Church earned the title “smoke quarterback” from her work convening a variety of partners in county health, emergency, and environmental services to discuss how to address the smoke, which blanketed much of the East Bay for long unhealthy periods of “red air” in recent summers. With prevailing winds off the Pacific blowing up against the East Bay hills, smoke often gets trapped in low inland areas of the county.
In crafting their new alerts, the county also worked to remove jargon and use plain language. The “Purple Air” real-time air quality app is not a click away on a smart phone for all, for example. “We found when we tested messages using EPA terms like ‘orange air’ and ‘red air’ for levels of air pollution, people didn’t know what we were talking about,” says Church.
Results of focus groups also suggested that some members of public were less likely to pay attention to county smoke alerts on their phones or Facebook than to information from a trusted local institution. As a result, the county created a new subscription within their alert system available to community institutions such as churches, youth organizations, senior centers, and worker centers.
The county also defined air quality thresholds and duration periods for alerts, and protocols for county health and other officials to implement. Experience with these air quality communications also informed the county’s COVID-19 response.
Such protocols are part of a body of fast-developing models for better regional communication about when to close schools or how to manage clean air shelters, among other wildfire season challenges discussed at a recent meeting of the Bay Area Climate Action Network, where Church shared what she learned with other cities and counties.
“Climate change threats are now, and we all have to come up to speed very quickly, ” she said. “No one can do it alone.”
Other Recent Posts
Change Detection Made Easier with New Lidar Survey
A new high-resolution lidar dataset gives planners a powerful tool to track flooding, levees, and wetland changes across the estuary.
Is Placing Sediment in the Shallows to Feed Marshes Working?
After two years of monitoring, a project to place sediment in shallow water off Eden Landing appears to be boosting surrounding marshes.
Living Shorelines Test Run Reports Back
A landmark study reveals how oyster reefs and eelgrass can build habitat and fight sea level rise in San Francisco Bay — if scaled up fast enough.
Protecting Birds as Burlingame’s Iconic Trees Come Down
San Mateo County’s El Camino Real has long featured eucalyptus trees, but their roots are breaking up the road, and their bark is clogging drains.
More Signatures Needed to Save Bay Area Transit
After witnessing fire disasters in neighboring counties, Marin formed a unique fire prevention authority and taxpayers funded it. Thirty projects and three years later, the county is clearer of undergrowth.
Stop Making Californians Pay for Corporate Pollution
States like New York and Vermont have already passed laws requiring companies to compensate the public for their pollution. California should be next.
The Race to Reinvent State Route 37
A sweeping plan to elevate SR 37 is underway, tackling chronic flooding, traffic congestion, and sea level rise while restoring Bay wetlands.
Journalism Fellowship Opportunities
Our magazine offers a variety of modest fellowships for journalists in training or community storytellers.
Plants Facilitate Transition to Higher Water
Save The Bay is restoring habitat transition zones with native plants to accommodate rising sea levels and support wildlife.
Hundreds Protest Proposed Cuts to San Francisco Environment Department
Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office has introduced sweeping budget cuts for the next fiscal year, including reduced support for climate action.
