On June 7, 2022, A.U.G. Signals Ltd. (AUG), Fort McKay First Nation (Fort McKay), Wood Buffalo Environmental Association (WBEA), and University of Toronto (UofT) signed an MOU to install and operate AirSENCE in the community of Fort McKay, Alberta.

Fort McKay First Nation is located along the banks of the Athabasca River with approximately 800 members of Dene, Cree, and Métis descent. The community is situated in the boreal forest of northern Alberta and lies at the center of a large-scale oil sands extraction area. The influence of oil sands mining and processing on Fort McKay’s natural environment, public health, and politics has led to its participation in resource development discussions as a key stakeholder. The community is concerned about the environmental quality and liveability of reclaimed land; a rise in VOC (volatile organic compound) levels in the air surrounding the oil sands^[1] has been observed, and community residents are justifiably distressed about the potential health impacts of these emissions.

The WBEA has monitored and reported air quality in northeastern Alberta since 1997. WBEA’s Ambient Air Technical Committee (AATC), composed of representatives from its member organizations, sets the strategic direction for air monitoring in the region.

AirSENCE units installed at Fort McKay will provide continuous measurements of particulate matter (PM₁, PM_2.5, and PM₁₀), CO, CO₂, NO, NO₂, O₃, SO₂, H₂S, and VOC every minute. Access to this data will allow the community to keep tabs on local air quality and make better informed decisions to help protect the health and wellbeing of its residents as well as the surrounding environment. [1] FORT MCKAY FIRST NATION’S INVOLVEMENT IN RECLAMATION OF ALBERTA’S OIL SANDS DEVELOPMENT

AirSENCE Joining the University of Toronto to Start “Measuring Air Quality to Manage Canada’s Investment in Sustainability”

We’re excited to announce the start of an NSERC Alliance Missions funded joint project between the University of Toronto and A.U.G. Signals Ltd. (AUG) to manage Canada’s investment in sustainability through measuring air quality.

Canada has embarked upon a dramatic transformation to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. The net-zero transformation must be monitored and evaluated in near real-time so that the knowledge gained can guide change and support continuous improvement. This two-year project aims to evaluate applications of low-cost sensor-based devices that measure both air-quality and greenhouse gases (e.g., AirSENCE) and to identify potential advantages of integrating them into Canada’s existing fragmented measurement infrastructure. The performance of AirSENCE will be further enhanced through in-lab research and validated through field deployment in a wide-range of locales such as urban traffic zones, neighbourhoods near freight hubs or airports, and indigenous communities. The synergies achievable by fusing data from low-cost monitors with data from space-based, mobile and government measurement infrastructure will also be explored.

Through this joint project, AUG will expand its AirSENCE product lines (AirSENCE-INDOOR and My-AirSENCE) to penetrate the residential and personal user market that has emerged due to increased interest in indoor air quality created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The project will also enable practical guidance on how to integrate low-cost monitors into air quality measurement infrastructure, and provide new knowledge needed to guide Canada’s economic recovery and investments in sustainability. After all, we can manage what we can’t measure.