Our Lungs

Let's protect our lungs and health from the hazards of coal smoke and forest fire smoke.

2018-2019 Air Quality Study

The Sustain-the-Train group has completed the first ever air quality study for Durango.
Sample taken every 15 seconds in Downtown Durango, downwind of the Train Station. Note the nighttime spikes when people in the plume are at home.

Live Train Smoke Readings

Note the excellent air quality prior to the Train resuming operations late September of 2018. Without the Train, Durango's South Side shares the **Class I Air Quality with the ***Weminuche Wilderness - https://www.fs.fed.us/air/technical/class_1/wilds.php?recordID=84

Sept 21, 2018 - The Train Resumes Operations

We hope you'll find some of the articles below of interest...

Further Reading

Air pollution linked to childhood asthma in nearly 50 per cent of cases

Worsening air pollution could be contributing to childhood asthma cases in, a study carried out in Barcelona has found. The Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) collated asthma incidence rates in the city for children between 1 and 18 years of age and concluded that 48 per cent could be attributed to air pollution every year. Learn More

Coal Fire Emissions Curb Children’s Growth

Putting more coal on the fire may help to keep off the chill, but it may not help your baby grow. New research found that the 3-year-old children of families who reported using coal for indoor heating were shorter than those whose families used cleaner fuels. Learn More

Ambient black carbon particles reach the fetal side of human placenta

Numerous studies have indisputably demonstrated that particulate inhalation results in health problems far beyond the lungs14. For example, research in different areas of the world with high15, moderate16, and low17 ambient PM showed that long-term exposure to particulate air pollution impedes cognitive performance. Accordingly, Maher et al.18 could detect the presence of combustion-derived nanoparticles from air pollution in the frontal cortex of autopsy brain samples. More importantly, the latter was one of the first studies that provided evidence of particle translocation in humans. Recently, we found BC particles from ambient air pollution in the urine of healthy children19, showing the ubiquity of this environmental contaminant having the potential to reach various organ systems. Learn More

Colorado Air Pollution Regulations - CDPHE

“Except as provided in paragraphs 3 through 6 below, no owner or operator of an intermittent
source shall allow or cause the emission into the atmosphere of any pollutant that is in excess of
20% opacity.” Learn More