This cooperative agreement provides great lakes restoration initiative (GLRI) funding to indiana university (IU) to further the goals of the integrated atmospheric deposition network (IADN), which are…

This cooperative agreement provides great lakes restoration initiative (GLRI) funding to indiana university (IU) to further the goals of the integrated atmospheric deposition network (IADN), which are to measure and evaluate persistent toxic chemicals in atmospheric deposition within the great lakes; to assess atmospheric loadings and trends of persistent toxic chemicals in the great lakes; identify new and emerging chemical threats; and support great lakes ecosystem assessments by providing high quality results.activities:IU will (1) operate and maintain sampling sites; (2) collect air (vapor and particles) and precipitation samples at established stations between november 2024 and december 2029; (3) analyze air and precipitation samples for five groups of organic compounds; (4) conduct emerging chemical surveillance; (5) educate/train graduate and undergraduate students and post-doctoral associates; (6) conduct method development for analysis of all target chemicals on the GS/MS/MS, PFAS in air, and untargeted analyses as screening for emerging chemicals; (7) develop protocol for the transfer of GC and GC/MS methods to GC/MS/MS; (8) conduct quality assurance and data management activities; (9) conduct data interpretation and statistical analyses; and (10) disseminate results through reports and publications.subrecipient:graduate students at the illinois institute of technology will operate and maintain the IADN monitoring station in chicago, IL for the duration of this agreement. The site operator will go to the site at least once a week to (1) collect vapor and particle-phase air samples, (2) conduct weekly maintenance of the air sampling equipment, such as changing cartridges, filters, and precipitation columns, (3) note all of the field conditions on prescribed forms, (4) set the timer for sampling, and (5) ship samples to the indiana university laboratory. Training of any new site operators will also be performed. Outcomes:the expected deliverables include annual reports for meteorological, legacy compounds, and PFAS (air and precipitation) data; quality assurance documentation; standard operating procedures and analytical methods; peer-reviewed papers on atmospheric loadings and temporal and spatial trends on legacy compounds and PFAS; peer-reviewed papers on chemical surveillance; joint peer-reviewed publications with other glnpo monitoring programs; and grant progress reports and final report. The expected outcomes include an improved understanding of the atmospheric fate and cycling of priority toxic chemicals in the great lakes region; improved understanding of the sources, trends, and loadings of chemicals of emerging concern entering the great lakes which will support better understanding of the effectiveness of toxic reduction strategies; and better informed decisions by environmental managers in developing and implementing strategies to reduce the presence of priority toxic chemicals in great lakes air, water, sediment, fish, and other wildlife. The intended beneficiaries of IADN are researchers and others interested in the status and trends of chemicals in the great lakes and all those who live, recreate, or work within the great lakes basin.