A multi-objective assessment of an air quality monitoring network using environmental, economic, and social indicators and GIS-based models

A geographic information system-based, multi-objective assessment approach that integrates environmental, economic, and social indicators was developed, and its application was demonstrated by assessing the O₃ and PM₁₀ monitoring networks in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Assessment was carried out in three phases, i.e., to evaluate the performance of the existing networks, to identify areas that would benefit from the addition of new monitoring stations, and to recommend changes to the Air Quality Monitoring Networks (AQMN). O₃ was well represented in the county with some redundancy in terms of the urban monitors. The addition of weights to the indicators had a minimal effect on the results. For O₃, urban monitors had greater social scores, while rural monitors had greater environmental scores. For PM₁₀, clustered urban monitors were redundant, and weights also had a minimal effect on the results. The clustered urban monitors had overall low scores; sites near point sources had high environmental scores. Several areas were identified as needing additional PM₁₀ monitors. The usefulness of a multi-indicator approach to assess AQMN was demonstrated and planners may use this method to assess the performance of air quality monitoring networks in urban regions.