Clewiston, FL – U.S. Sugar recently released air quality data from government and private sources showing the results of three years of air quality monitoring in the Glades farming communities.
The latest report shows better than average air quality in the Glades. It also includes internal data collected by professional air monitoring experts on behalf of U.S. Sugar confirming the public air quality data.
“The people of U.S. Sugar are happy to release the Second Annual State of Our Air Report for the 2020-2021 season, which shows that the Glades communities have air that is good, safe and clean,” said Robert H. Buker, Jr., president and CEO of U.S. Sugar. “U.S. Sugar, along with hundreds of independent, family farmers, is proud of our partnership and commitment to our community.”
Air quality monitoring equipment was placed in three additional locations throughout the region. All the internal monitoring data farmers collected confirms that the farming region has good air quality that meets all state and federal air quality standards.
Summary & Key Findings of the Second Annual State of Our Air Report:
- Privately collected PM 2.5 data confirms that the Belle Glade monitor was never “malfunctioning” and instead provided accurate and reliable air quality data for the people of theGlades. FDEP and other agency officials also confirm the fitness and reliability ofpublic equipment.
- In November, Florida Department of Environmental Protection installed a new, federally-approved FEM regulatory monitor that shows readings consistent with the previous monitor and is the same type of monitor used to collect the private data included in this report.
- Both publicly available and privately collected data on small particulate matter (PM 2.5) show the Glades’ communities continue to have clean, safe and “good” air – which is the very best designation of air quality when analyzing PM 2.5 (as set by the EPA).
- In addition to low particulate matter levels, the Glades’ communities also experience extremely low levels of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP)— which isproduced by various sources and often found in breathing zones. Privatelycollected data over the entire sampling period consistently fell well belowtheRegional Screening Level (RSL) established by the Environmental Protection Agency.
- As farmers and businesses that rely on science and data in our daily lives and to provide additional professional-grade air quality monitoring information, U.S. Sugar started privately monitoring local air quality to provide additional data to the residents of our communities.
For more information and to read this and last year’s report, please visit: ussugar.com/2021-clean-air-report/.
U.S. Sugar is a farming company that grows sugarcane, citrus, sweet corn and other winter and spring vegetables in South Florida.
