The New York Times recently featured an article on Dr. Franco Montalto’s work in monitoring the ecology of Alley Pond Park and its recent inclusion in the US Forest Services Smart Forest program. The data being collected is part of his efforts in cooperation with the NYC Parks Department for city-wide monitoring of NYC Greenstreets and green stormwater infrastructure.
Franco A. Montalto, an associate professor in Drexel’s department of civil, architectural and environmental engineering, said that the availability of affordable digital sensors made it possible for him to gain access to that day’s recordings from Alley Pond Park on his iPad and instantly compare them with data from the two experimental storm-water runoff sites in the city.
But despite the high-tech tools, Dr. Montalto insists on having eyes and ears verify the data. To that end, more than a dozen high school, college and graduate students have periodically trekked to the site at Alley Pond to sift soil through their fingers and take photos.
“To believe the sensors, you need validation,” he said. “Bad data is worse than no data.”
Eventually, scientists working at Alley Pond Park would like local schools to make the research part of their lessons.