Media advisory: EPA to celebrate UB’s East Side air quality monitoring project

Zoom image: Univeristy at Buffalo medical and architecture and planning students go on a walking tour of Buffalo's East Side, where they talked with residents about issues in the community, in October 2021. Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki/University at Buffalo A low-angle, hortizonal view of UB faculty and students walking across a neighborhood street on Buffalo's East Side.

Univeristy at Buffalo medical and architecture and planning students go on a walking tour of Buffalo's East Side, where they talked with residents about issues in the community, in October 2021. Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki/University at Buffalo

Release Date: April 15, 2024

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Sean Bennett, geography, poses for a portrait near a flume that is used to research fish movement in February. This is installed in a research area of the Statler Commissary.
“I am proud to say that this EPA-funded project meets those goals and will help reduce health disparities on Buffalo’s East Side. ”
Sean Bennett, professor of geography and associate dean for social sciences
University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences

BUFFALO, N.Y.  – University at Buffalo and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials will gather Tuesday to celebrate a project that aims to improve air quality on the city of Buffalo’s East Side. 

Eun-Hye Enki Yoo, PhD, associate professor in the UB Department of Geography, is the principal investigator on a $499,963 EPA grant to gather air quality data at sampling sites on the East Side using low-cost portable environmental sensors. This data will help identify and reduce community- specific air pollution in what is a predominately Black and disproportionately burdened community.

The project is one 132 air quality projects in 37 states that received a total of $53.4 million from the American Rescue Plan and Inflation Reduction Act. 

“As one of the nation's premier public universities, and a flagship of New York, the University at Buffalo is committed to research, education and service. I am proud to say that this EPA-funded project meets those goals and will help reduce health disparities on Buffalo’s East Side,” says Sean Bennett, PhD, professor of geography and associate dean for social sciences in the UB College of Arts and Sciences.

What: Press conference to discuss EPA funding award to UB, followed by a demonstration of low-cost air monitoring sensors  

When: 10 a.m., Tuesday, April 16. Media should be set by 9:45 a.m.

Where: Delavan-Grider Community Center, 877 E. Delavan Ave, Buffalo, NY 14215  

Who:   

  • Lisa F. Garcia, EPA regional administrator 
  • Sean Bennett, associate dean of the UB College of Arts and Sciences
  • George Nicholas, CEO of the Buffalo Center for Health Equity 
  • Candice Moppins, director of the Delavan-Grider Community Center

Credentialed press who would like to attend should RSVP to Donette Samuel (samuel.donette@epa.gov) and Iris Crawford (crawford.iris@epa.gov) by Monday, April 15. 

Reporters are encouraged to arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the press conference. TV crews and cameras will be responsible for their own technical and sound requirements.  

Attendees will need to present ID at the front of the center.

Media Contact Information

Tom Dinki
 News Content Manager
Physical sciences, economic development
Tel: 716-645-4584
tfdinki@buffalo.edu