Breathe Easy Berkshires

01/20/2026

LET'S TALK!
We're conducting a health study that combines scientific monitoring with firsthand community knowledge. We want to hear about:
- Any health conditions you think may be connected to air quality or industrial pollution
- What you’ve noticed about changes in the air, smells, or seasonal patterns
- How air quality has affected your family’s day-to-day life
- What kinds of information, resources, or support you'd want from projects like ours

If you’re open to talking or sharing your story (confidentially or publicly), please email [email protected].

You can also fill out the online health survey at: https://airtable.com/appsjXSRRUOv8RVv0/pagx3hjRSAQbT2Myo/form

This is our community. Your insight matters.
Thank you,
Breathe Easy Berkshires – Berkshire Environmental Action Team

11/11/2025

Fight Cruel Conditions for Activists! Take the survey at home.

Thanks to everyone who stopped at Guido's this morning in the snow to fill out our Air Quality / Health surveys. If you missed us, you can do it from the comfort of your own home.
http://tinyurl.com/CleanAirBerkshires

We'd also be very glad to conduct an in-person interview for a more detailed talk about your experiences regarding air quality's affect on your health. Please contact [email protected] to set up a time to talk in December.

11/04/2025

Please take a moment to speak up in favor of cleaner air! This legislation needs voices of support to be considered by the Legislature. ACE makes it easy to speak in support.

Our voices are making a difference! The House and Senate Public Health Committees reported favorably our Breathe Easy Indoor Air Quality Bill H.4590/S.1546. As we celebrate this progress, we call on you continue the momentum by advocating to the Ways and Means Committee in support of our indoor bil...

09/26/2025

Pittsfield Friends! Join us tomorrow. Rose will be in the roster of speakers at the Make Polluters Pay event "Bridges to the Future", Saturday 9-27, 1:30 at West Side Riverway Park. Talking about Breathe Easy's look at wildfire smoke and health survey, and the need to Put Peaker Power Plants in the Past.

On Saturday, environmental activists and local leaders will gather in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, to urge passage of a bill aimed at forcing companies responsible for polluting the environment to create a climate resiliency fund.

09/22/2025

We had the pleasure of being on WTBR's Morning Drive show recently. Have listen, as we talk about our air quality monitoring efforts in Pittsfield and the health study connected to the program.

Staff Report — September 18, 2025 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT) is calling on residents of Pittsfield and Berkshire County to share their experiences with air quality […]

09/18/2025

Hello,
My name is Drake Reed, and I’m part of the Breathe Easy Berkshires project, a community-led air quality project that’s been operating here in Pittsfield for the past two years. Our team has been running an ambient air quality monitoring network focused on the city’s climate-burdened neighborhoods.
We’ve been seeing something deeply concerning: there is a 12.5 year disparity in life expectancy between downtown neighborhoods and the southeast side of the city. We believe that air pollution , especially PM2.5 and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) , may be playing a serious role in this gap. These pollutants are known to contribute to asthma, COPD, heart and lung disease, increased hospitalizations, and missed days from school and work.

But no number or map can speak louder than lived experience.
We need to hear from you. Your voice is crucial to understanding your experiences with air quality and how to change it.
We're conducting a health study that combines scientific monitoring with firsthand community knowledge. We want to hear about:
- Any health conditions you think may be connected to air quality or industrial pollution
- What you’ve noticed about changes in the air, smells, or seasonal patterns
- How air quality has affected your family’s day-to-day life
- What kinds of information, resources, or support you'd want from projects like ours

If you’re open to talking or sharing your story in person (confidentially or publicly), please email me at [email protected] of leave a comment and I’ll follow up.

Or fill out our online survey!
https://breatheeasyberkshires.org/air-quality-health-survey/
You can also check out more about our work at breatheeasyberkshires.org

This is our community. Your insight matters.
Thank you,
Breathe Easy Berkshires – Berkshire Environmental Action Team

08/06/2025

August 6, 2025 - though MUCH better than the last couple of days, the EPA air quality forecast for today is still somewhat high. Kids, elderly folks or anyone with breathing, cardiac or other health conditions, consider limiting your time outdoors or wear an N95 mask.
Check Pittsfield air quality in your neigbhorhood in real time, anytime at breatheeasyberkshires.org

07/30/2025

Air Quality Alert: 2025 Canadian wildfires

This past weekend (July 26–27), Pittsfield and the Greater Berkshires experienced dangerously high levels of air pollution, driven by ongoing wildfires in Canada.

The EPA’s stationary monitor in Pittsfield recorded Air Quality Index (AQI) levels exceeding 150, crossing into the “Unhealthy” range. Our BreatheEasy monitors also picked up AQI readings ranging from 178 to 101.

To put this in context: the AQI rates 0–50 as Good air quality. An AQI over 150 poses health risks for everyone, with especially serious effects for “sensitive groups”, a category that includes more people than many realize:
Children & Teens
Adults with heart and lung disease
People with asthma and other respiratory conditions
Outdoor workers

Stay informed, limit outdoor activities during high AQI days, and check your local air quality regularly. Be on the lookout for signs of poor air quality: hazy or cloudy skies, irritated eyes or nose, headaches, dizziness, breathing difficulties, or the smell of smoke or sulfur. We’ll continue monitoring and sharing updates as we learn more. In the meantime stay updated on air quality at https://breatheeasyberkshires.org/ .

06/09/2025

The air quality index continues to measure at the high end of the "moderate" range, due to particulate matter readings from wildfire smoke. For sensitive groups, consider limiting time outdoors when possible, or wearing N95 masks to block inhalation of particles. You can keep an eye on current readings with the EPA's AirNow app, at Airnow.gov, or go to BreatheEasyBerkshires.org for current measurements in Pittsfield.

06/05/2025

Air Quality Alert: Take a look at the most recent readings from our stationary air quality monitors throughout Pittsfield, as well as the current Air Quality Index from EPA's Airnow.gov. We're seeing moderate air quality today due to smoke from Canadian wildfires. Individuals sensitive to air quality may want to limit time outdoors. You can keep an eye on the current readings by going to BreatheEasyBerkshires.org

01/17/2025

Breathe Easy Berkshires on WAMC! Hear about the Butternut Fire Discussion we're holding tomorrow. We welcome last minute joiners - At BEAT, 20 Chapel St., Pittsfield. 1:30 on Friday 1/7/25.

A federally funded project aimed at better understanding how air quality impacts life in Pittsfield, Massachusetts is holding a meeting about wildfire smoke on Friday.

11/20/2024

Wildfires hit the Berkshires: As most of you probably already know, there's a large wildfire in South County, centered in Great Barrington. It's 1,100 acres as of 11/20/24 and smoke is spreading through the area.
Latest report from WAMC - https://www.wamc.org/news/2024-11-20/defying-expectations-great-barrington-wildfire-expands-tenfold-to-1-100-acres-heavy-smoke-blankets-the-berkshires

If you're in Pittsfield, check our monitors across the city on BreatheEasyBerkshires.org. If smoke is in your area, please wear an N95 or KN95 mask to filter out the fine particulate matter in the smoke. These particles get deep into the airways, even into the bloodstream and can cause or worsen asthma, COPD, headaches, inflammation and other health troubles.
Follow Josh Landes, reporter for WAMC here on Facebook or get his reports on 90.3 FM. He's doing a great job covering the fires.