A breath of fresh air: MAAMS ensures clean air for Servicemembers

CAMP ARIFJAN, Kuwait - Servicemembers working at the Port Ashuiba industrial area act as the life line to the front line by shipping supplies in and out of Kuwait by boat 24-hours a day.

To ensure the air quality in the surrounding area is safe for Servicemembers, the U.S. Army Public Health Command operates a Mobile Ambient Air Monitoring Station at the Sea Port of Demarcation, Kuwait.

"We use the MAAMS to ensure satisfactory air quality for our Soldiers in the high industrial area," said Maj. Khalid Chaudhry, who serves as the force health protection officer with the 3rd Medical Deployment Command Support. "With so much manufacturing in the area, we want to make sure it is a safe environment for our Servicemembers."

The MAAMS ensures the air the Servicemembers breath is safe.

"The MAAMS allows us to sample the air for pollutants," said John Cepis, an environment protection specialist with the U.S. Army Public Health Command. "It collects the dust particles in the air. With the raw data we can look at the wind speed and direction, temperature and humidity as well as the contents in the air."

The data collected from the MAAMS is not only used to monitor the current air quality but it is processed to determine long-term effects of the air as well.

"All the data we collect is stored in a global network," said Cepis. "If Soldiers get sick in the future, we can look back at this site and asses what kind of exposures could have lead to their illness."

Monitoring air quality is crucial to ensuring Third Army Servicemembers are working in a safe environment.

"The MAAMS is important because it allows us to take care of our Soldiers health," said Cepis. "We can make sure that the air they breathe as they work will not make them sick."