DALLAS — Staked into the ground, an air quality monitor is located in a backyard off Toronto Street. This is in the Singleton Corridor neighborhood in West Dallas, yards away from the GAF Roofing plant.
The SharedAirDFW air monitor was installed in 2023, and it collects live data on particles in the air, particularly PM 2.5.
PM 2.5 are fine particles that are so small they can travel into the respiratory tract. Caleb Roberts with Downwinders at Risk said, "You can't swallow, sneeze or get rid of PM 2.5."
He is concerned about the short and long-term health risks.
"It can cause nose and throat irritation initially, then lead to some cardiovascular disease, lung disease and even lung cancer," said Roberts.
For six months in 2023, Texas A&M, in partnership with many organizations, studied the PM 2.5 levels from that monitor.
Dr. Natalie Johnson, Associate Professor of Environmental Health at Texas A&M University, discussed the results of the study.
"The levels in the Singleton Corridor area exceeded the 24-hour EPA limit 35 times during the six-month study period," said Dr. Johnson. But if the data is being compared to the World Health Organization standards, it would have exceeded the limit 107 times in the six-month study period.
During the study, residents were also surveyed.
"This is concerning because overall the Singleton Corridor residents have a four to five higher rate of asthma compared to the rest of the DFW area," said Dr. Johnson. 84% of residents surveyed said air pollution makes their family sick.
The EPA National Pollution Rankings placed the Singleton Corridor as the worst 3% in the nation in particulate matter exposure, and the worst 4% in air toxics cancer risk.
Janie Cisneros, a lifelong resident, founded Singleton United/Unidos to get GAF out of her neighborhood. Her daughter has asthma and she and her mom both have chronic health problems. Her father also died of cancer. She believes the air quality in the Singleton Corridor is a cause of their issues.
"Our health is on the line. Our life is on the line. 75212 is already the most polluted zip code. We live less years than the rest of Dallas," she said.
From a scientific standpoint, Dr. Johnson said GAF leaving the neighborhood would likely lead to an immediate reduction in air pollution levels. She said immediate benefits for health would follow.
In a statement, a GAF spokesperson said, "GAF has not had an opportunity to review the information shared tonight, but we take this opportunity to reiterate the fact that GAF is a good operator and has complied with the terms of its air permits. GAF has been inspected numerous times by various agencies (City of Dallas, TCEQ, and EPA) in recent years and there have been no notices of violation issued.
GAF has taken a number of steps including production rate decreases and process improvements at the facility to further reduce emissions. These steps are in addition to the prior decommissioning of one of two production lines. GAF voluntarily reduced its emissions and the amount of material that the plant can produce and has demonstrated its emission reductions through third-party stack testing.
GAF voluntarily offered to leave West Dallas and rezone the property and if this zoning is approved, no other industrial company can operate at the site."