Arkansas Ambient Air Monitoring Network: Annual Network Plan for 2026-2027

The Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“ADEQ”) recently issued a document titled:

ARKANSAS AMBIENT AIR MONITORING NETWORK – Annual Network Plan for 2026-2027 (“Plan”).

The Plan was prepared by DEQ’s Office of Air Quality.

The Plan has previously been described as:

... the framework for the establishment and maintenance of statewide air quality surveillance (“AQS”) system.

The sampling of ambient air conditions is an important part of the process for determining whether an area is or will remain in compliance with the Clean Air Act National Ambient Air Quality Standards (“NAAQS”). EPA uses Clean Air Act authority to require state and local monitoring agencies to establish a network of air monitoring stations. Siting and operational criteria established by the federal agency are used to determine compliance with NAAQS. Further, EPA requires state and local agencies to conduct an assessment of their monitoring networks periodically.

Note that the states are primarily responsible for ensuring attainment and maintenance of each NAAQS in its air quality control regions once EPA has established or revised them. Each state is then required to formulate, subject to EPA approval, an implementation plan (i.e., “SIP”) designed to achieve each NAAQS. The ability to demonstrate that the state has the capacity to adequately sample and monitor for each NAAQS is required to be demonstrated by the state.

Three primary objectives of such monitoring networks arguably include:

• Ensuring the public has access to clean air by comparing data and implementation of the NAAQS and other health indicators for toxics.
• To provide the public with timely reports and forecasts of the Air Quality Index.
• To provide information to health and atmospheric scientists to better inform future reviews and revisions to the NAAQS.

Arkansas and the other states’ monitoring network plans describe which pollutants and other parameters are used at the various ambient air monitoring sites and why they are measured at those specific locations. Also typically described are changes in the network which may include new locations along with new and discontinued measurements at existing locations. Proposed changes to the network in the near future are also addressed.

The Arkansas Plan includes:

•  Arkansas Ambient Air Monitoring Network.
  • Ozone Monitoring Network.
  • Particulate Matter Monitoring Network.
    • Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Network.
    • Coarse Particulate Matter (PM10) Network.
    • PM10-2.5 Particle Mass.
    • PM2.5 Speciation.
  • Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) Monitoring Network.
  • Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) Monitoring Network.
  • Carbon Monoxide (CO) Monitoring Network.
  • Lead (Pb) Network/Lead Waivers.
    • Entergy Independence.
    • Entergy White Bluff.
• Appendices.

A copy of the Arkansas Plan can be found here.