EPA integrates nationwide air monitoring network for better services and sharing of information
In order to have better transparency for the data on nationwide air quality monitoring network, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) has started investigating on the monitoring measures of environmental institutions, industrial parks, and government-owned business. The EPA completed the integration of data from 205 real-time monitoring stations in Taiwan and sharpened the resolution of images. More information regarding air quality monitoring is being provided, which is helpful to trace the source of pollution, perform simulation analysis, and adopt preventative measures.
Stations that are included in the integration are listed below:
76 stations from EPA
26 stations from the 6 municipalities
33 stations from industrial parks (10 from Sixth Naptha Cracker facility in Yunlin County, 10 from Kaohsiung Linhai Industrial Park, 9 from Linyuan Industrial Park, and 4 from the Tainan branch of Southern Taiwan Science Park)
70 stations from large-scale enterprises (50 from Taiwan Power Company, 6 from China Steel Corporation, and 14 from Chinese Petroleum Corporation)
A total of 205 stations have been integrated (See Figure 1).
These stations are mostly located in the following cities and counties: Kaohsiung City (62 stations), New Taipei City (18 stations), Taoyuan City (18 stations), Taichung City (16 stations), Taipei City (15 stations), Yunlin County (12 stations), Miaoli County (11 stations), Tainan City (10 stations), and Changhua County (10 stations).
This list indicates that major metropolitan areas and industrial parks each have an average of 10 stations.
Results of integration can be found on the homepage of http://taqm.epa.gov.tw/. The results have been combined with TGOS, which utilizes responsive web design (RWD) that provides services on webpages and mobile devices. Different layer modes such as street views and satellite images are shown on the platform. A nationwide air quality monitoring platform has been established. Users may zoom-in and out freely, which allows them to get a clearer picture of the ambient air quality. The platform also shows the overall air quality and the geographic location of the stations, and all data from integrated stations can be found here. The platform now provides data and information from the 205 integrated air monitoring stations throughout the country. In the near future, the platform will utilize the feature of GIS systems to develop a multiple image layer folder for users to find more information.
The EPA said that the integrated data are more transparent in showing the information of air quality monitoring network. In addition, the integration represents the tremendous effort in improving air quality by government officials, industrial parks, and large-scale coporations like Taiwan Power Company, Chinese Petroleum, and China steel. More reduction measures will be adopted to reduce the emission of air pollutants and improve air quality.
source: http://enews.epa.gov.tw/enews/fact_Newsdetail.asp?InputTime=1060119115812