Jeffrey Collett, professor and chair of the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University, has been appointed to a national U.S. Department of Agriculture Air Quality Task Force for 2016-18.

The task force is composed of representatives from industry, agriculture, academia, government agencies and non-governmental organizations, as well as other agricultural and environmental experts. Its goal is to promote USDA research efforts and identify cost-effective ways the agriculture industry can improve air quality. It also helps better coordinate activities and resources among USDA agencies and other federal partners, such as the Environmental Protection Agency.

Among the task force’s responsibilities: advising the Secretary of Agriculture on air quality and its relationship to agriculture, based on sound science; reviewing research on agricultural air quality supported by federal agencies; promoting intergovernmental coordination in establishing agricultural air quality policies to avoid duplication of efforts; and ensuring that USDA-supported air quality conservation practices are based on peer-reviewed research and are economically feasible for agricultural producers.

Collett’s research includes cloud and fog chemistry; aerosol particles; sources and transport of reactive nitrogen; and investigation of emissions from shale gas development.