Data Visualization
WISE Web Portal
The Water Infrastructure and Supply Efficiency (WISE) regional water partnership between Aurora Water, Denver Water and South Metro Water Supply Authority is one of Colorado’s best examples of a collaborative and innovative approach to meeting today’s water supply challenges. Sharing available water supplies and infrastructure capacity reduces groundwater reliance, bolsters renewable water supplies to the South Metro area, and maximizes existing water supply usage. LRE Water developed the WISE Web Portal as a web-based resource allocation tool that allows ten partner entities to place water and capacity orders and collaboratively trade available water supplies within the South Metro WISE Authority system. Interactive alerts inform users about changes, opportunities, and resource request outcomes to facilitate planning and operations. The Portal plays a significant role in the daily operations of the WISE system and enables timely communication between water managers and operators.
AirNow Mobile App Development and Operation
Sonoma Technology worked with the EPA to design, develop, and roll out the new AirNow mobile app, which is available for free from both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. Our integrated team of air quality scientists, software engineers, and user interface designers worked to develop and implement the app, which provides a simple interface so users can quickly and easily check current and forecast air quality information.
The app automatically displays the current Air Quality Index (AQI) information for a user’s local area, as well as the forecasted AQI for the next five days. The app also shows current and forecasted AQI for most U.S. cities or zip codes, and users can save favorite areas in the app for quick reference.
The air quality information displayed in the app is the same that is shown on AirNow.gov, which Sonoma Technology has helped EPA operate and enhance for almost two decades. The air quality data collected on AirNow.gov comes from hundreds of regulatory monitors stationed across the country that are operated by local air quality agencies. The app also includes the AirNow Fire and Smoke map, which allows users to quickly see if their region is being impacted by wildfire smoke.
The New York Times Wirecutter review website named the AirNow app as their top pick for home air quality monitoring. In their review, they noted the AirNow app “…offers you the simplest way to get the info and interpret what it means… AirNow makes it easier for you to understand your local AQI than the other apps do.” The Sonoma Technology team continues to work with EPA to add new features and functionality to the app.
Smoke Sense Study Mobile App Design and Development
Sonoma Technology developed the Smoke Sense mobile application (app) in support of EPA’s Smoke Sense study, a citizen science study investigating health and productivity impacts from wildfire smoke. Sonoma Technology co-authored a peer-reviewed article published in the journal GeoHealth (Smoke Sense initiative leverages citizen science to address the growing wildfire-related public health problem) on the results of the study’s pilot season (August 2017 to January 2018).
The Smoke Sense app displays fire, smoke, and air quality data based on user location, and collects user observations on smoke, health symptoms, and changes in behavior. The app is publicly available for the Android and iOS platforms.
The app interacts with users through weekly notifications, quizzes, and a badge reward system. Sonoma Technology also developed the Smoke Sense application programming interface (API) and database to transmit and store data. The app updates air quality information hourly, fire data two to four times a day, and smoke data once or twice a day.
Data collected through the app is helping EPA researchers determine how smoke from fires impacts public health and productivity, and develop communication strategies to warn at-risk populations and communities about unsafe levels of smoke due to wildfires.
Innovative Web Service Streams Real-Time Weather, Air Quality, and Traffic-Related Air Pollution Data to BREATHE Participant Smartphones
Sonoma Technology designed a modeling system that integrates real-time local weather data with traffic and vehicle emissions data to estimate pollutant concentrations by on-road vehicles. This web service supports pediatric asthma research as well as smartphone/smartwatch applications that provide real-time information and alerts to help children avoid asthmatic incidents.
For each web service request made on a study participant’s smartphone/smartwatch, a unique dispersion model simulation is carried out based on estimated emissions from freeways and major roads within 2 km of the participant’s location. Near-road pollution estimates are combined with regional real-time air quality data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s AirNow system and the South Coast Air Quality Management District to provide a comprehensive snapshot of a participant’s local exposure to air pollution. The web service also provides real-time weather information at the participant’s location, as specific weather conditions can also be asthma triggers.
This web service supports the Biomedical REAl-Time Health Evaluation (BREATHE) platform, which was developed by the Medical Imaging Informatics Group at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine and other project collaborators to provide a comprehensive framework to address pediatric asthma. The framework standardizes and organizes sensor data, local and regional environmental data, clinical data, and patient-reported activities and outcomes. BREATHE is the focus of the UCLA/NIH Pediatric Research Integrating Sensor Monitoring Systems (PRISMS) Informatics Center.
Educational
Empowering Future Environmental Stewards: The Kids Making Sense Pilot Program by the Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency
The Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency worked with eight schools in Spokane County, WA, to launch the Kids Making Sense program in Fall 2023, where 13 teachers took part in training with Sonoma Technology scientists. Each school received a classroom kit with multiple hand-held air quality sensors, supplies to conduct a range of hands-on experiments, and accompanying curriculum. Over the first year, the program reached approximately 1,000 students in the Spokane area. Extensive feedback was collected through pre-and post-program surveys. Teachers reported that students were engaged with curriculum, and that the Kids Making Sense activities helped to educate students about local air quality topics they had primarily learned about on the news. Teachers also reported that their students gained air quality knowledge and skills such as the ability to interpret and analyze data and design a scientific investigation. For more information about Kids Making Sense visit: https://kidsmakingsense.org.