Smog News

Dallas installs monitors to measure air quality and maybe thwart asthma

Here's one of the devices being installed right now.

Courtesy photo

The city of Dallas is installing devices that will monitor the quality of the air we breathe.

In partnership with The Nature Conservancy in Texas and Texas A&M Transportation Institute, the city is installing air quality monitors in nine Dallas neighborhoods such as Exline Recreation Center, south of Fair Park.

The program is part of a project called Breathe Easy Dallas which tracks the effects of air pollution on childhood asthma.

Susan Alvarez, assistant director of Environmental Compliance & Sustainability, says they're excited to finally get the equipment into neighborhoods.

"This project will give us better insight on neighborhood-level air quality, while also advancing the state of the science related to this equipment," Alvarez says in a release.

According to Alvarez, these instruments have been calibrated to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ)-monitors that are used to determine overall air quality in Dallas.

"It will be interesting to see how well these instruments work, and how we can best use the data from these sensors to improve public health," she says.

Breathe Easy Dallas started in 2017 and is a collaboration between:

Texas A&M University Transportation Institute (TTI) Center for Advanced Research in Transportation Emissions, Energy and Health (CARTEEH)
the city of Dallas (COD)
The Nature Conservancy in Texas (NCT)
other health and community organizations (OH&CO. just kidding.)

Their ultimate goal: to improve public health outcomes among high-risk populations.

"In deploying these air monitors in the field, we embark on a critical, one-year study that will provide us with the data necessary to better understand the role that local air quality plays in relation to pediatric asthma," says Dallas Healthy Cities Program Director at The Nature Conservancy in Texas Kathy Jack.

"The collected data will be shared with local health and community stakeholders to advance additional, parallel research efforts and inform future air quality related health interventions" Jack says.

The nine neighborhood locations were selected through review of current Safe-Route-to-School program areas, along with available public health data relative to prevalence of childhood asthma, and racial and economic demographics.

sustainability

Animal News

Wills Point, Texas man charged with cruelty for abandoning 18 animals

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Lucas Wayne Penrod, charged with animal cruelty

Another animal cruelty case has emerged from Van Zandt County, resulting in the arrest of a Wills Point man: Lucas Wayne Penrod was charged with Cruelty to Nonlivestock Animals, a 3rd degree felony.

It began on Friday, October 24, when the Wills Point Police Department performed a welfare check at a mobile home within the city limits. Officers became concerned when they heard multiple dogs barking along with a foul odor of animal waste.

On October 25, after obtaining a search warrant, Wills Point PD and the SPCA of Texas ACI Unit entered the residence and found multiple animals living in deplorable conditions.

The mobile home was filled with trash and animal feces. The team discovered a total of 8 cats, 2 guinea pigs, 4 adult dogs, and 4 puppies, cruelly confined to the unsanitary living conditions on the property.

Two dogs were confined to filthy crates with no access to water.
Three puppies were in a small bathroom covered in urine and feces; one of the puppies was deceased and decomposing.
The guinea pigs were found in a cage without access to food or water.

Most of the animals showed signs of long-term neglect and were in dire need of urgent medical intervention. The animals were seized by the SPCA of Texas and transported to the organization's Dallas location for veterinary care.

Dog in cage Wills Point Lucas Wayne Penrod Dog abandoned in Wills Point by Lucas Wayne Penrod.SPCA

On October 26, Lucas Wayne Penrod, the owner of the animals, contacted an SPCA of Texas Investigator regarding the animals. The Investigator determined that Penrod had unlawfully allegedly abandoned the animals, failing to provide them with proper care, resulting in the death of one of the puppies and the critical state of the surviving animals.

On October 28, the SPCA of Texas Animal Cruelty Investigations (ACI) Unit obtained an arrest warrant for Penrod, who was apprehended by Tyler Police Department and booked into the Smith County Jail with a $50K bond. Penrod was charged with Cruelty to Nonlivestock Animals, a 3rd degree felony.

On November 1, at a civil custody hearing at the Van Zandt County Justice of the Peace Precinct 3 courthouse in Wills Point, Penrod relinquished custody of the 18 allegedly abandoned, cruelly treated animals to the SPCA.

"The squalid conditions these beautiful animals were living in were abhorrent--locked in spaces without food or water, in their own excrement," said SPCA of Texas ACI Unit Chief Investigator Courtney Burns, CAWA. "This is some of the worst mistreatment of domestic animals I've seen in my extensive career in animal cruelty investigations. In no small part, these pets owe their lives to the Wills Point Police Department. If it wasn’t for their quick thinking to involve us right away, I don't think the animals would have made it."

"This case perfectly illustrates the team effort that investigating and prosecuting animal cruelty cases in Texas is," Burns added. "We are extremely thankful to the Tyler Police Department for their efficient assistance in apprehending Penrod so that he can be brought to justice in the timeliest manner possible. And we are especially grateful to the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office and court system with whom we continue to partner to get justice for abused animals in their jurisdiction."