This assistance agreement provides full federal funding in the amount of $74,960

This $74,960 Project Grant from the Environmental Protection Agency Region 9 supports a resident-led community air monitoring initiative through the Environmental Justice Small Grant Program (CFDA 66.604). Oneoc, doing business as Volunteer Center Orange County, will leverage the funding to implement a multi-faceted air quality monitoring and education project in Southeast Santa Ana, California from June 2022 through November 2023. Key deliverables include six community-wide "Toxic Tours" using low-cost air monitors; personal indoor air monitoring for 20 community volunteers; an indoor air pollution workshop and brochure; and development of advocacy materials based on findings to increase awareness of local environmental justice issues. The project aims to better understand cumulative air pollution and COVID-19 impacts through community, regional, and personal monitoring efforts while empowering residents and building partnerships to inform future policy.

Preaward costs are approved back to june 1, 2022. The purpose of this american rescue plan funded grant is to provide funding to oneoc to leverage the implementation of a resident-led community air monitoring initiative using low-cost sensors to better understand and address the local, cumulative impacts of air pollution and covid-19 in southeast santa ANA. The project is guided by five project aims: (1) community air monitoring to characterize local pollution, (2) regional air monitoring to characterize environmental disparities, (3) personal air monitoring to identify individual risks of air pollution exposure, including indoors, (4) empowering residents through leadership training and health education, and (5) building sustainable, multi-stakeholder local partnerships to increase awareness of local EJ issues and community needs and to inform future policy change. The project will be guided and overseen by comunidad unida, aire limpio (CUAL), a steering committee made up of youth and adult residents. Outputs will include three community forums on EJ issues in southeast santa ANA, six community-wide 'toxic tours' to conduct outdoor monitoring, a workshop and brochure on reducing personal exposure to indoor air pollution including covid-19, a report of findings from the three-part community air monitoring study (aims 1-3), and the development of EJ advocacy materials for multiple stakeholders based on these findings. CAA 103(B)(3): people with moderate-to-severe or uncontrolled asthma are more likely to be hospitalized from covid-19. Air pollution may contribute to asthma. By addressing air pollution in CAA 103(B)(3) projects, the chances of severe illness from covid-19 are reduced.activities:a. Bimonthly toxic tours (project aims 1 and 2): community-wide air monitoring across the southeast santa ANA will be carried out using low-cost air monitoring devices called atmotubes through a total of six bimonthly 'toxic tours,' or day-long events in which CUAL committee members and other community volunteers will conduct sampling along designated routes in the project focus area (project aim 1) and sites throughout the region (project aim 2). B. Personal air monitoring (project aim 3): given the relationships between indoor air pollution and covid-19 risk, the third aim of this project is to understand and reduce indoor air pollution exposure in southeast santa ANA. We will recruit 20 volunteers from the community to participate in this study. First, participants will complete a brief online questionnaire related to the interior makeup of their home (e.g., 'do you have a gas stove?'), their indoor activities (e.g., 'do any members of your household smoke inside your home?,' 'do you open the windows when you cook?'), and their beliefs and understanding surrounding indoor and outdoor air pollution hazards, emission sources, and concentrations (e.g. 'do you believe the air inside of your home is healthy to breathe?'). After completing the survey, participants will receive an atmotube to monitor their daily activities and indoor air pollution at home for a period of two weeks. Each participant will be asked to take the monitoring device around with them and maintain a time-activity diary. After the first week, we will host an online workshop for half of the participants (10 people) to discuss their experiences using the air monitors, any observed peaks in air pollution, and daily activities that seem to lead to high exposures. In the workshop, we will also discuss tips to help reduce indoor air pollution (e.g. opening the windows when cooking). After the completion of the two-week period, participants will complete the second questionnaire with the same set of questions as the first questionnaire in order to assess the impact of the at-home air monitoring D