Border Ozone Reduction and Air Quality Improvement Program Awards Initial Grants

The Border Ozone Reduction and Air Quality Improvement Program awarded the first in a series of applied research grants for projects designed to reduce high levels of harmful ozone and other air pollutants in the Mexicali, Baja California, and Imperial Valley, California, border region. The program is the result of a $2 million seed grant to LASPAU from InterGen, a power generation firm with projects around the world, including operations in Mexico and California. The grant is one of a number of InterGen's sustainable development initiatives.

Since the establishment of the program in late 2002, an independent, binational scientific advisory board has been convened. The board has established grant rules and a peer review process, invited proposals from a large cross-section of institutions, and selected the first round of grant recipients. The initial grants support the program's attempt to facilitate partnerships between academia and the industrial, civic, and government sectors, with the shared goal of improving air quality in the border region.

"The need to respond to the serious environmental challenges in the border area around Mexicali is urgent. The Border Ozone Reduction and Air Quality Improvement Program is unique in that it develops new knowledge about the problem that is extremely important to provide real and practical ways to improve air quality," commented Mario Molina, MIT professor and winner of the Nobel Prize for his work on the harmful effects of ozone."

Among the challenges for reducing alarming levels of airborne pollutants has been an absence of crossborder norms and networking to address deteriorating air quality. These initial grants are being given to leading experts from various disciplines in both countries," said Ned Strong, LASPAU's executive director.

The following individuals received grants in the first round of funding:

• Margarito Quintero Núñez, a professor and researcher at the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, will address a major public health concern by monitoring and mapping pollen sources in the Mexicali region. His study will permit local health officials to minimize the harmful effects of high pollen counts, especially among children.
  
  
• Kimberly Collins, director of the Center for Border and Regional Economic Studies at San Diego State University, will develop a model to engage residents on both sides of the border in improving air quality. Her research will assess environment-related crossborder behavior patterns, identify barriers to change, and work with communities and businesses to adapt a new, environmentally sound culture.
  
  
• Marco Antonio Reyna Carranza, also a professor and researcher at the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, will determine the relationship between airborne contaminants and respiratory diseases to provide a baseline for future efforts to improve binational environmental health policies.
  
  
• Dzoara Damaris Tejeda Honstein, a professor and researcher at the Center for Environmental Quality at the Tecnológico de Monterrey, Mexico City, will investigate how increasing the efficiency of vehicle traffic in Mexicali can reduce harmful hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and other ozone precursors. Grants are awarded for a maximum of $40,000 per project per year for each of the two years of the program. The second round of grant applications will be due in October 2004. LASPAU is actively pursuing additional funding for the program from foundations and public sector institutions on both sides of the border.