Event also offers music, free food, door prizes, and kids’ activities
Lori Graham
Contributing Writer
EASTERN MONTGOMERY – On Feb. 25, the results of the Lafayette Area Household Survey will be presented to community members at the Elliston Fire Station at 2 p.m.
The event also welcomes individuals and families to relax and enjoy fellowship with old time music, free food, kids’ activities, and door prizes.
The survey focused on the monitoring of health conditions and well-being in the community and was motivated by the community members living in the eastern Montgomery region.
“Our goal was to canvas every other house within one mile of the Elliston/Lafayette border,” Virginia Tech Professor and Director of Appalachian Studies Dr. Emily Satterwhite said.
Community researchers Crystal Mello, Christina Gray and Teresa Peters canvassed with undergraduate students, along with Irene Leech, Tina Badger and Amy Shea, who helped design the survey, and graduate student Aran Garnett-Deakin who worked diligently on the project as a researcher.
Part of the motivation of the study was to anticipate potential future developments that might have and continue to contribute pollution to an already industrialized area. The researcher say it is possible there is pollution from I-81, Route 460, and the railroad, truck traffic to the landfill, Mountain Valley Pipeline, and the Gate station. A recent approval of a Love’s truck stop adds to a potentially already disproportionally overexposed community.
The study has two parts: the community survey and the application and observation of Purple air monitors. The survey was conducted throughout 2022, and the team is now able to present the analyzed results to the community that was so instrumental in its progress. The air monitoring is ongoing with two purple monitors that have been placed in the focus area of the study. The weather station map, viewable at https://www.wunderground.com/wundermap, is also helping to understand the direction potential pollution could travel.
Initially there was one monitor, but a second monitor was added and will soon move to a new location, Satterwhite said. The current location of the air monitors can be viewed at www.purpleair.com.
“We will be trying to calibrate the two monitors, now at North Fork Road and a little bit north on 460,” Satterwhite said. “As soon as I can get lasers replaced, I will move the other one.”
There is a sense from residents in this part of Montgomery County that their health considerations are not always considered in the placement of industrial businesses. The survey aims to provide some support and reassurance to citizens that their wellbeing is a priority but more importantly to allow members of the public to take a lead in the process.
The community-driven project has given a platform for Virginia Tech students to also learn more about the area they are living in while getting to know the people inhabiting the region.
“We are very fortunate to have had Big Spring Baptist Church and Reverend Ken Gray help in connecting me to some of the parishioners and in talking to neighbors,” Satterwhite said.
Local people were instrumental in developing the survey and knowing what to ask of their friends and neighbors. Community Researcher Crystal Mellow had neighbors who are Spanish speaking and wanted to make sure language barriers were addressed in the survey. Other questions that were important in the survey considered community members’ medical vulnerabilities that may be impacted by air pollution, but also asked people to reflect on what they love about living here and what they would they like to see changed.
“The goal was not just to collect data but listen to people; the good and the wishes [for change],” Satterwhite said.
The event welcomes all community members and is a family-friendly event with free food, door prizes, music, and activities for the kids. The event will be held this Saturday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. at the Elliston Fire Department, 5001 Enterprise Drive, Elliston. A snow date has been set for March 3.
Additional questions about the Lafayette Area Community Survey, IRB#22-052, or the presentation event can be directed to Dr. Emily Satterwhite (540) 553-5430, or email at satterwhite@vt.edu
