OLYMPIA, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Specially equipped vans will soon be driving Washington neighborhoods as part of a new statewide air-quality study.

The Washington State Department of Ecology’s year-long project will cover communities across the state, including Bellingham. Mount Vernon and several other communities in Skagit County.

Delivery-style vans equipped with air monitors will travel local streets, giving researchers a neighborhood-by-neighborhood look at air quality.

Officials say the study will help identify gaps in existing air-quality data, improve future monitoring efforts and show where air-quality improvements may be needed.

The vans won’t have cameras or collect personal information.

Field work is expected to begin this winter, with results planned for release in 2028.