An app called AirWatch has been launched by the Healthy Air Network that provides air quality data to users through its connection to monitors located throughout Massachusetts.
By communicating the real-time data that includes fine particulate matter and pollen levels, AirWatch aims to help people make informed decisions that can protect their health, said Sarita Hudson, the senior director of strategy and development for the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts, which leads the Healthy Air Network. It also can provide personalized alerts by collecting information on users’ age and existing health conditions.
There are 15 sensors that inform Hampshire County’s air quality data within the app, those being five in South Hadley, three in Northampton, two in Easthampton and Amherst and one each in Hadley, Belchertown and Ware.
While a few of the sensors in the county are currently offline, they are being worked on in order to be put back on the map, said the senior Project Coordinator of the Healthy Air Network, Francheska Bermudez.
As Keleigh Walder of the public health institute explained, communities that are closer to highways and industrial areas are at high risk for breathing in more polluted air therefore “access to clear, local information is more important than ever.”
Hudson said the app was built for and grounded in the community. Its development and community-oriented design took 18 months to complete.
“People are pleased with how easy it is to use,” she said.
The idea for the app was a result of the Springfield area consistently falling into the country’s highest ranking for asthma cases, Hudson explained. The Healthy Air Network intends to focus on environmental justice communities like Springfield, and elsewhere in the region.
The network used its congressionally directed federal funding which it received in 2024 to assist in the app’s human-centered design and expansion, though in the process of building the app, some of its additional funding fell through.
The Healthy Air Network was to be included in Springfield’s Community Change grant of nearly $20 million from the Environmental Protection Agency. The network also partnered with the Hitchcock Center for the Environment, which had a three-year grant from the EPA. Both were canceled due to the Trump administration’s EPA funding cuts.
“It was quite disappointing to lose that,” Hudson said.
The network uses PurpleAir sensors which are low-cost, around $280 each, as opposed to regulatory air monitors which can cost up to $50,000, Hudson explained. Their sensors are calibrated to match the functions of the high-cost sensors, though they require more frequent maintenance as well as Wi-Fi and access to a power outlet.
The Healthy Air Network collaborates with the Yale University School of Public Health to help monitor and maintain sensor accuracy. Yale maintains the sensor health dashboard and informs the network if they notice a sensor is not reading properly and needs replacement.
Additionally, ReGreen Springfield helps with maintenance when the sensors need to be cleaned up.
Hudson said Healthy Air Network uses the sensor data to guide its policy advocacy work, which is one of the network’s main missions. Their key projects at the moment are the Freedom to Move bill, advocacy against the proposed Springfield Biomass Plant and the Outdoor and Indoor Air Quality Bills.
Yale’s sensor data analysis shows that transportation is a key driver of fine particulate matter in the area. As a result, the network is advocating for more public transportation. The Freedom to Move bill aims to ensure public transportation expansion projects in the state will reduce pollution.
While there are sensors all over Hampshire County and the state, Hudson said that the organization also works directly with groups to help them set up sensors if there is not one in their area.
“Let us know, we’ll help you work through how to get one there,” she said.