For people with asthma or other respiratory diseases, heatwaves cause concern for breathing. Now there's a resource to find out the air quality in your area. The Pioneer Valley Healthy Air Network tracks real time air quality in our region. Each circle on the map shows an air monitor located in the Pioneer Valley Healthy Air Network. The color will change based on measured air quality. You can click on each circle for more information about the monitoring site and what precautions to consider – if any. 

The Pioneer Valley Healthy Air Network recently received a $200,000 EPA grant to support our network partners to build community leadership on air quality, climate resilience, environmental justice, urban forestry and community science. We will be guided by Resident Advisors who are helping to choose the locations for the sensors, advising on how to share collected data in a way that residents find useful and will be advocating to address sources of pollution.  

This project began in 2021 with funding from Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey’s office to measure air pollutants to understand and address the high rates of asthma in Springfield and the region. This collaboration brings together the Yale School of Public Health, the Cities of Holyoke and Springfield, ReGreen Springfield, the Earthwatch Institute, the US Forest Service, and stakeholders from the Pioneer Valley Asthma Coalition and Live Well Springfield.

Air quality is a critical aspect to living a healthy life. Poor air quality is linked to increased rates of asthma and other chronic conditions. According to the Allergy and Asthma Network (AAFA) poor air quality from pollution, traffic, building emissions, wildfires, manufacturing, fuel combustion, dust storms, agriculture, and more all contribute to an area’s air quality.

Want to get involved with the Pioneer Valley Healthy Air Network? Contact Lynley Rappaport, LRappaport@publichealthwm.org

Although Springfield and the Pioneer Valley region has dropped from #1 to #12 Asthma and Allergy Capital as determined by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, asthma is still a serious issue with concerning inequities for Black and Latino communities. Hampden County residents continue to be impacted by asthma with emergency room visit rates more than two times that of the state in 2019 (1,128 vs 518 per 100,000, respectively and hospitalization rates over 70% greater (145 vs 84 per 100,000 respectively). Within Hampden County, there were large differences in admission rates for asthma between races. In 2019, the most recent year in the data set, Black residents of Hampden County were admitted to the emergency department for asthma at a rate double that of White residents. Black hospital admission rates for asthma rose since the last CHNA, whereas they declined or held steady for other racial groups. The state did not provide 2019 data on Latinx admission rates, but in the last CHNA, Latinx rates for ER visits were double Black rates (2617 per 100,000 vs. 1310). The disparities were even more extreme for Latinx pediatric ER visits.

Find more Asthma facts and resources in the area. Visit the Pioneer Valley Asthma Coalition website.

Source: MDPH Hospital Admissions, State Tables

The Home Energy Efficiency Team (HEET) started mapping gas leaks in 2015, making the magnitude of leaks in the streets visible and accessible to the general public for the first time. They've recently improved the format for their annual gas leak maps and instituted the first-ever map of Massachusetts’ costly plans to replace aging gas pipes with new ones (the “Gas System Enhancement Plans”). Check out their maps below. Learn more about HEET

Are there gas leaks on your street? Check the map and type in your address to find out! Gas leaks are a huge source of methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas. Learn how to use the map.

A GeoGrid is a non-emitting technology that heats and cools homes using the stable temperature of the earth, without using fossil fuels. Want a GeoGrid on your street? Complete the HEET's form! Learn more.

Allergy season is here, but COVID remains. COVID & seasonal allergies share some symptoms, but not others. Use this chart to compare the symptoms of COVID-19 & seasonal allergies so you can tell the difference. If you are unsure, get tested!

Learn how the Utah Department of Health Asthma Program:

Quality care is vital for people with asthma. Those who are part of underserved and at-risk communities live with distinct barriers to care. Join the Allergy & Asthma Network along with board-certified allergist Bridgette Jones, MD, as they look at ways to reduce barriers and provide the best asthma care for each and every person.