About

1. What is AIR Inc.?
2. What does AIR Inc do?
3. Who leads AIR Inc?
4. Who’s on the board of AIR Inc?
5. When and where does AIR Inc meet?
6. What has AIR Inc achieved so far?
7. Any significant ongoing initiative you can tell us about?
8. How can I stay informed?

What is AIR Inc.?

AIR, Inc. is East Boston’s longest serving community volunteer organization. Founded as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 1981 by East Boston’s airport activists, to be a legal entity capable of receiving and expending funding from the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) to conduct public education, technical consultation, engagement, and advocacy for reducing and mitigating airport impacts in East Boston and beyond.

What does AIR Inc do?

Air Inc. provides ongoing technical support for community members and community groups as needed, offering summaries of dense technical information such as annual Environmental Data Reports (EDR’s), Environmental Planning and Status Reports (ESPR’s) and Environmental Impact Reports (EIR’s), providing analysis, and developing advocacy platforms to enrich community participation in airport and related transportation and environmental planning and policy processes.

Along with providing ongoing community support, AIR, Inc. organizes regional advocacy campaigns, coordinates participation in official comment processes, and develops, promotes, and supports new and existing programs and innovations in impact mitigation.

Who leads AIR Inc?

AIR Inc. is led by a community volunteer Executive Committee using an open board format and holding public meetings on the second Wednesday of the month.  Meetings are posted on our webpage and Facebook Channel, and promoted through posts, print publicity, and email.

Who’s on the board of AIR Inc?

AIR, Inc.’s volunteer community board executive committee leadership is a matter of public record filed with the Massachusetts Secretary of State, and includes:

President: Gail Miller
Vice President: Chris Marchi

Treasurer: This seat is now vacant due to the loss of our beloved long-term community leader Mary Ellen Welch. Please let us know if you’re interested in serving in this position.
Clerk: John Walkey

What has AIR Inc achieved?

Among AIR, Inc.’s successes, are:

• 1981 Signing of the Bird Island Flats Agreement, which pioneered the first use of open space as airport Impact mitigation by creating the East Boston Harborwalk
• 1987 First Community Agreement- the first ever community / airport mitigation benefits agreement which established:
  • The East Boston Foundation, which has distributed over 5 million dollars in grant funding to local organizations offering airport mitigation programming
  • The Logan Airport Soundproofing Program: which soundproofed all participating homes in the 65 DNL noise contour, and 
  • The Airport Edge Buffer Park System (which became the East Boston Greenway)
• Participated in negotiations for the creation of the Belle Isle Marsh
• C. 2000 Requested the Logan Airport Health Study (LAHS), and maintained advocacy through 2014, when this first of its kind public study was completed and released

Any significant ongoing initiative you can tell us about?

 
More recently, using public education funding provided by Massport, as part of the First Community Agreement of 1987 and subsequent extensions, AIR, Inc. has developed and launched its Health Initiative, which began in 2013 in preparation for the release of LAHS.  

The AIR, Inc. Health Initiative has included:

Logan Airport Health Study: Conducted by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to study respiratory, cardiovascular and auditory health impacts of Logan Airport

2014 LAHS Community Health Briefing: Providing a comprehensive analysis, via a LAHS Community Health Briefing, of the LAHS
2015 EH&E LAHS Technical Briefing: Funded a professional review of the LAHS, to confirm its validity, point out its limitations, update the community on more recent developments in epidemiological research, and provide recommendations for next steps
2016 Noise in the City Study: Collaborated with Dr. Erika Walker to provide access to 53 specific noise sampling locations in East Boston for her Noise in the City Study
2016 Airports 101; Airport Health Forum: Developed, co-funded in conjunction with Somerville Transportation Equity Partnership (STEP) and the city of Somerville, and organized Airports 101; Airport Health Forum, the first ever airport exclusive air and noise pollution research forum.  Through this all-day public education forum on airport pollution impacts, AIR, Inc. brought the leading airport pollution research scientists from around the world to Boston to provide direct presentations of their research and field questions from Community members.  Over 200 community members participated. The forum was professionally filmed and provides an ongoing resource to members of the public and the press who are interested in deeper learning about the impacts of aviation operations on regional, community, and personal family health.
2016 Destination: East Boston, a full-length documentary providing public education and insight into the history and culture of 50 years of airport / community relations and local activism
2017 Measurement of Aviation Emissions in Near-Airport Communities Project: Supported BU/ Tufts air quality monitoring program (currently underway)
2018 ARISense Project:  co-developed and funded a partnership between AIR, Inc., Aerodyne Research, Inc., and Olin College of Engineering to develop, procure, and implement a networked air quality monitoring system to provide real time air quality data directly to the public in aviation and roadway impacted communities.  The ARISense Project is the first of its kind networked monitoring system, and will provide local families with a means of leading lower pollution exposure lifestyles, contributing to their long term health and bending the trajectory of negative community health downward
2019 Breathe Easy Project: A locally-driven pilot initiative to install air quality filtration systems throughout a local elementary school.  This project will be supported by Olin College of Engineering, which will provide baseline and follow-up air quality monitoring inside and outside of the school to provide data on the efficacy of air filtration systems at removing harmful particulate aviation and other pollution from the built classroom environment.  This research will add to existing research conducted in East Boston residential structures which reported 75% efficiency of standard HEPA filtration.  

When and where does AIR Inc meet?

2nd Wednesday of each month, 6:30pm-8:00pm

Anna DeFronzo Center, 395 Maverick Street, East Boston, MA 02128

 

How can I stay engaged?

Meetings: All AIR, Inc. meetings are open to the public. Air Inc. advertises our meetings on our webpage and Facebook channels, as well as through frequent social media campaigns, print publicity, and also through word-of-mouth. 

Email: airportimpactreliefinc@gmail.com

Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/126114214679252/

AIR, Inc. networks with dozens of local, regional and national community-based, institutional, regulatory, civic, educational, and industry groups using diverse communications strategies which include:  social media, direct marketing, publicity, print collateral, and one-on-one and group public and private presentations. AIR, Inc.’s social media channel alone hosted over 1 post every three days throughout the past year (February 2018 – February 2019), generating a social media reach into the tens of thousands via reposts and over 200 shares. 

Air Inc. Is recognized by residents, non-profit organizations, local academic institutions, East Boston‘s political delegation, as well as the local and regional press as the region’s leading impact reduction and mitigation advocacy group.