News Release 383

VISITS TO DEPARTMENT AIR POLLUTION
WEBCAMS INCREASE DRAMATICALLY

Volume 34-383

Contact: Kerry Cordray

(For immediate release)

573-526-4220

JEFFERSON CITY, MO, SEPT. 15, 2006 -- The number of visits to the Department of Natural Resources' air pollution camera sites for St. Louis and Kansas City have seen more than a tenfold increase since the addition of real time pollution values and additional links to other air pollution information sites.

In less than two years, the number of monthly "hits" to the two webcam pages has increased from about 500 to more than 6,000 visits to each site in July 2006, according to the department.

"The primary goal of the air pollution webcam pages is to keep highly sensitive individuals informed of current pollution levels so they can plan their activities around bad air days or hours," said Ron Stockett, an air monitoring specialist with the department's Environmental Services Program. The webcams can be viewed by visiting the department's Web site at www.dnr.mo.gov/env/esp/aqm/archcam-1.htm.

About 1,650 of the July 2006 webcam visitors were directed to the sites by links from other Web sites or search engines, but most of the more than 12,000 hits were from individuals who typed in the address or used personal bookmarks, according to Debbie Boeckman, the department's Web manager. This indicates a high repeat customer use of the pages.

When the webcam services were first created in March 2000, the pages only had photographs of a fixed view of the St. Louis and Kansas City skylines, automatically updated every 15 minutes. When compared to reference photos, these views could give the observer an idea of current pollution conditions. In the last two years, technological improvements have allowed the inclusion of real time monitoring data on the page. The numerical data is updated hourly and color-coded to reflect what the Air Quality Index (AQI) level would be if the current level continued. Since then, visits to the pages have steadily increased.

Given the success of these cameras, the Air Pollution Control Program is considering installation of a third camera in the Springfield area.

"The addition of these cameras has provided these areas with information that improves the public's understanding of how air quality affects daily life," said Terry Rowles, air monitoring unit chief with the department's Air Pollution Control Program. "We hope to offer the same tools to residents living in the Springfield area."

For news releases on the Web, visit www.dnr.mo.gov/newsrel. For a complete listing of the department's upcoming meetings, hearings and events, visit the department's online calendar at www.dnr.mo.gov/calendar/search.do.

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