PARRAMORE, Fla. – Lawanna Gelzer, a member of The Coalition of 100 Black Women of Central Florida, says pollution in Parramore is a serious concern.
All the cars coming through Parramore, she says, along with traffic from I-4. Leave road dust and exhaust emissions in the air.
When combined with heat and ozone particles, she believes breathing that in can lead to serious health issues like asthma.
Gesturing toward a machine outside, Gelzer explained, “We have to change this once a month just to make sure everything is running. This is the meteorological one that gathers the heat. This is where it brings it in.”
Thanks to a $500,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency, Gelzer and the Coalition are placing these $50,000 air monitoring devices in Parramore and 13 other communities. “When it’s hot, if one (pollutant level) goes up and you see a lot of cars, this is contributing to this factor,” Gelzer said. “We’re trying to make sure the community knows when to be outside.”
She says her team has received training to properly set up and monitor the equipment. The machines collect daily air quality data for up to six months and submit that information to the EPA.
“We have been complaining to government agencies that we have some concerns about the air quality, the environment that was happening —especially in the BIPOC community, the Black and Brown communities,” Gelzer said.
She hopes the study will lead to real change, including more accountability for developers and stronger protections for communities at risk.
She pointed specifically to the City of Orlando’s proposed Canopy project, which would be built directly under I-4.
“We’ve done enough air studies down by the I-4, and it shouldn’t happen,” she said. “I would not want anybody to have their children or their elderly family members down there to participate in such activities.”
So far, four machines have been set up. The group plans to complete their air quality studies within the next two years.