Clean(er) Air in Allegheny County

This past winter I was in a couple of cohorts for the ROCIS program.  They loan you air quality sensors to use inside and outside your home and teach you quite a bit about internal, residential air pollution. I learned a lot about how bad the outside air is and that we’re one of the most polluted areas in the US.  I took notes/links and will start posting some of what I’ve learned here in the Environmental category.

I have also “drank the Kool-Aid” and am ready to convert from gas to an electric convection oven/stove top.  We’ve already bought a larger toaster oven / air fryer and used it for everything from pizza to rotisserie chicken to baked chicken and baked potatoes.  All without needing to run the kitchen exhaust fan to dump all the NOx fumes.

Probably the most surprising thing I learned is that my air quality sensors aren’t nearly as craptastic as I thought.  The outside air where I live (near Regent Square) is kinda awful, so opening up the windows I get readings of just how awful.  Here’s a visualization of yesterday’s pollution done by PlumePGH, there’s a lot of history on that site.