The U.P.’s only other air monitor is located at the Seney National Wildlife Refuge in Schoolcraft County.

While smoke has been a recurring issue in the U.P., the timing of the monitor installation appears fortuitous, coming on the heels of an unprecedented wildfire smoke event that choked the state for a good part of last summer.

“We know that the western U.P. typically gets hit harder than the rest of the state when smoke comes in from the northwest,” said Jim Haywood, senior meteorologist for the Air Quality Division at EGLE. “Until now, we’ve had to rely on what forecasters in Wisconsin and Minnesota were telling us via their monitors, as they would get hit first.

“With the new monitor and forecast region, we’ll have a better idea if smoke is impacting the western U.P. or not. We were flying blind in that area not knowing if incoming smoke was elevated or reaching the ground. Now we know without guessing and forecast accordingly.”

Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy environmental technician Brian Lomerson, left, explains the air monitoring system to Drew Yesmunt and Joe Scanlan, both of whom will oversee the site. (Photo courtesy of the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy)

The $30,000 monitor was funded by a federal direct award through the American Rescue Plan Act, which provides grant opportunities to upgrade equipment and establish new monitoring sites.

After consulting local environmental groups, the monitor was installed in Negaunee Township due to its location in the most populated county in the U.P. As well as its proximity to the cities of Ishpeming and Negaunee.

Aside from smoke, the fine-particulate monitor will exclusively measure Particulate Matter, a pollutant regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through its National Ambient Air Quality Standard. Particles less than 10 micrometers in diameter can get deep into a person’s lungs and some may even enter the bloodstream. Of these, particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter pose the greatest health risk.

Because of this, measuring and evaluating PM2.5 is a statewide priority for EGLE, said Susan Kilmer, air monitoring section manager for EGLE’s Air Quality Division.

“Areas in the Upper Peninsula have experienced wildfire smoke, which contains PM2.5, from Western states as well as Canada,” Kilmer said. “Having another PM2.5 monitor in the Upper Peninsula provides another reliable measurement and source about this pollutant.”

Data from the new monitor will be posred in near real-time to both EPA’s, AirNow website as well as www.deqmiair.org. Citizens can directly access this information, sign up for notifications and make informed decisions about outdoor activities, Kilmer said.

Air quality analysts will track the monitor and related equipment that currently provides immediate notifications of system issues, such as a power failure or problems with air flow, temperature or the control board.

The monitor collects data continuously, with software measuring new concentrations every 10 seconds.

While there are no plans at this time for additional regulatory monitors in the U.P., there may be opportunities for additional low-cost sensors, such as Purple Air monitors that measure continuous PM2.5. These sensors are not used for environmental compliance with NAAQS, but can provide citizens with real-time local data, Kilmer said.

EGLE plans to add a regulatory air monitoring site in both north Detroit and east Detroit in 2024-25. And with a recent change to the PM2.5 NAAQS, EGLE is required to add an additional site in Lansing by January 2027.

The new Negaunee site should prove low maintenance for site operators, who will conduct monthly in-person verification of the monitor’s accuracy.

“But we’re in the U.P.,” Lomerson said. “There’s weather to deal with, snow to remove, other components to our polling system that could have issues. There are many other opportunities for extra visits.”