Air-quality monitoring van coming to Spokane streets

Washington state Department of Ecology will send mobile laboratories into 20 communities considered overburdened, including Spokane, Spokane Valley and several tribal areas. The statewide fleet, scheduled to begin work in December, consists of three minivans and a 24-foot truck resembling a freight vehicle. Signs on the vans will identify them with the words “I monitor air quality.”

The vehicles will test for about 36 airborne pollutants. Measurements will cover ozone, sulfur dioxide, lead, carbon monoxide, particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide, as well as greenhouse gases and compounds that receive less routine monitoring. Larger equipment in the truck will help detect metals and volatile organic compounds. Instruments range from shoebox-sized units to devices bigger than a mini fridge.

Spokane is expected to have a van for at least one calendar quarter. It will repeatedly travel a route beginning at downtown’s eastern edge and continuing into Spokane Valley, stopping short of the Idaho border. Unlike most of Washington’s 150 stationary monitoring locations, which generally produce hourly averages, the mobile equipment will continuously gather readings in intervals shorter than one minute. The aim is to compare typical pollution levels across locations and produce heat maps based on roughly a year of measurements.

The Legislature provided $10 million for the one-time project in 2023. Spheros Environmental holds the primary contract, valued at $8 million, and has brought in subcontractors. Remaining funds support added staff, equipment and outreach. The study is expected to continue through late winter 2027. After readings are checked for faulty instrument results, data, project updates, planning materials and quality-assurance documents will be posted on Ecology’s public website. Any pollution source posing an especially serious danger to people or animals would be reported immediately to partner inspectors and regulators.