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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, August 5, 2009

HECO Web site provides air quality data for Leeward Coast

Advertiser Staff

Hawaiian Electric has launched a Web site that provides information about air quality on the Waianae coast, where the utility has most of its electrical generation stations on Oahu.

The Web site, www.westoahuair.com, includes data from three air quality monitoring stations located in Waianae, Lualualei, and Camp Timberline.
The monitoring stations are part of an agreement with community members to track environmental conditions in the area, said Robbie Alm, Hawaiian Electric executive vice president.
“We want to thank the Kapolei, Makakilo and Waianae coast community leaders for their participation in the community benefits meetings while the new unit was being planned,” Alm said.
Readings at each site, updated every hour determine the area’s daily air quality based on the presence of pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, particulate matter, and nitrogen dioxide.
As part of additional environmental monitoring activities, Hawaiian Electric also is tracking baseline monitoring data, collected from 2007 to 2008, which details the condition of nearby fish communities and populations prior to the construction and operation of a new power plant nearing completion at Campbell Industrial Park. The baseline monitoring data for all 16 fish monitoring stations is available at www.heco.com.