Rep Madaro Files Bill to Improve Environmental Monitoring

By John Lynds

East Boston State Representative Adrian Madaro has filed a bill that would require Massport to begin an assessment to identify areas within East Boston that are not meeting air quality and noise pollution level standards. In an effort to ensure further public transparency, the bill calls for state-mandated expectations to routinely evaluate and publicly share information detailing Logan Airport’s significant impact on the air and noise pollution that Eastie residents are subjected.

“Basically now we get a year-end report from the Port Authority detailing its environmental impacts,” said Madaro. “What this bill does is bring that data to the community on a more routine basis. If passed, Massport would be required to post the data of areas that are not meeting air quality and noise pollution level standards, so residents can have faster access to the data–rather than having to wait until the end of the year to see air and noise impacts.”

The bill, entitled An Act Improving the Accessibility of Certain Massport Environmental Data Relative to East Boston, would first have the state to call on Massport to facilitate the assessment and management of the current and future quality of air levels in Eastie. The provisions included in this legislation calls for Massport to outline a strategy to reduce air and noise pollution and how the Port Authority plans to implement and enforce these objectives.

The state would then mandate Massport to prepare and publish a strategy that delineates standards for quality of air and noise levels.

“A draft of this strategy will be made accessible to the public and comments may be made to the Authority before the execution of a final draft,” the bill reads.”The (Port) Authority should conduct a review of whether air quality standards are being satisfied, and if not, which areas within East Boston fail to meet those standards.”

These areas within Eastie would then be designated as air quality management and noise level management areas.

“After review of the results from the assessments on air and noise pollution, Massport, in coordination with state and local officials, should determine the measures necessary to remediate these designated areas,” reads the bill. “This will require a written plan that outlines action steps for the Port Authority to execute on a pre-determined timeline in order to ensure the achievement of air quality benchmarks.”

“This technology is already being used in neighborhoods around London’s Heathrow Airport,” said Madaro. “Heathrow operates 22 monitoring sites within its network and the four local authorities that is supports. These sites can provide 15-minute real-time data on air quality levels that are then hosted publicly online.”

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