As of April 2023, the Roeliff Jansen Community Library is in the process of becoming certified as a Sustainable Library. The Sustainable Libraries Initiative’s Sustainable Libraries Certification Program (SLCP) provides library leaders with a tested, structured path forward to increase a library’s commitment to environmental stewardship, economic feasibility, and social equity. For more information on the Sustainable Libraries Initiative, click here.

April 2024 Update

Roe Jan Library is happy to be a member of Bard College’s Hudson Valley Library Air Quality Network. In April 2024, students from Bard’s Community Science Lab installed an air quality monitor near the picnic tables behind the library. This chart reports live air quality measurements received from the monitor.

Purple Air sensors measure airborne particulate matter (PM). Particulate matter describes solid particles suspended in air, including dust, smoke, pollen, and other organic and inorganic particles. Two lasers within the device alternate every five seconds and count the number of particles by particle size (0.3, 0.5, 1, 2.5, 5, and 10 μm). From there, the device calculates mass concentrations of PM1.0, PM2.5, and PM10. These masses are then used to compare to the Air Quality Index, a guide created by the EPA to quantify different thresholds and their related air quality impacts on human health.

For more information, go to https://cesh.bard.edu/csl/purple-air-library-network/.