The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

AN initial assessment of air quality around the Aquinas College campus has shown a substantial reduction in air quality on days when smoke is in the area - in one case 71 times worse than on clear days.

Catholic Board of Education officials yesterday made public aspects of their ongoing air quality assessment in response to the massive fire at the New Providence Landfill earlier this month.

At the school’s Gladstone Road campus yesterday morning, officials indicated that the school had been compiling air quality samples since November as it looked to catalogue the data necessary to aid decision-making at the school in the event of a fire in southwest New Providence.

In the wake of this month’s blaze, which forced nearby Jubilee Gardens residents out of their homes for some time, the high school was forced to close its campus for nearly a week.

As a result of reoccurring fires at the city dump, environmentalists associated with the school viewed the campus as a prime location to carry out an extended study on air quality.

In November, officials outfitted the school with a nephelometer to monitor air quality at the campus.

Readings showed a need for officials to add wind gauges and several other weather apparatus to its system, all formatted to measure, assess and document smoke and air trends at the school and its surrounding area day-to-day.

Promoted as the nation’s first extensive air quality index, the system is being managed by Dr Danny Davis, assistant professor of chemistry, environmental and life sciences and director of institutional strengthening at the University of the Bahamas.

According to Dr Davis, an alumnus of Aquinas College, initial ratings obtained by the school’s nephelometer have shown substantial reduction in air quality on “smoke days”. On the afternoon of the March 5 landfill fire and at the peak of the smoke at the campus, the instrument recorded a particulate level that was 71 times higher than normal in the air at the campus.

Data from the instrument was used in support of the reopening of the school, confirming that the particulate concentration had returned to pre-fire normal levels.

Dr Davis maintained that while these findings were not final, the data compiled has been used to assist the school in many of its decisions.

“We haven’t seen what we can expect, but we have learned quite a lot,” he said. “We have recognised that the wind direction plays a significant role in what’s happening, hence our decision to go and acquire a wind weather station.

“Another thing we have noticed is that, during the course of a day, we can have increases and decreases, so that allows us to (address matters) as long as we see trends. This is only the first smoke event that we have been able to document with the instrument.

“Heaven forbid if there is another smoke event, but we would use that to collect more data to become wiser as to how to make decisions around this.”

Officials said the school’s system has compiled more than 20,000 data points around the campus since November, with plans to document and plot these points, draft a report and refer that document to health practitioners for their comments.

In addition to the Catholic Education Board’s announcement of its data collection system, Director Claudette Rolle yesterday indicated that Aquinas College has expanded its daily school schedule by roughly an hour and 15 minutes - with a daily start at 8.25am and finish at 4.15pm.

Mrs Rolle said the school implemented the change to regain the course hours lost due toi temporary closure as a result of this month’s fire.

The school also announced plans to expand its computer-based platforms to better aid students - with its Google classroom and hangout applications acting as the major components.

Officials have also contacted several external bodies to help students unable to take part in its Internet-based course applications.

Yesterday’s press conference was chaired by Archbishop Patrick Pinder and several other Catholic officials.

Environment Minister Kenred Dorsett has stated that government plans to issue a structured tender process for proposals to manage and remediate the New Providence landfill.

He told Tribune Business on Monday: “An RFP (request for proposal) is being structured now, and that will be advanced to deal with the total operation and remediation of the site.”