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Presenter from Raleigh shows yearlong PurpleAir sensor network to fill smoke-monitoring gaps in Buncombe County
Summary
Kimberly Hornberger presented a year-long, non-regulatory PurpleAir sensor deployment in Buncombe County that tracked smoke spikes from regional wildfires and demonstrated where low-cost sensors can add coverage between regulatory monitors. The board discussed connectivity, calibration, and potential expansion tied to Helene recovery funding.
Kimberly Hornberger, a presenter from Raleigh, described a PurpleAir sensor project deployed across Buncombe County to provide additional, non-regulatory air monitoring after Hurricane Helene. The county borrowed PurpleAir sensors through an EPA sensor loan program and began deploying them late last year to add coverage between regulatory monitors, particularly where smoke from wildfires produced short, sharp PM2.5 spikes.
Hornberger said the network’s daily-average data (January–October) tracked closely across colocated sensors but showed short-lived spikes tied to a March wildfire in nearby South Carolina and later to Canadian wildfires. “We…
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