MACTEC AWARDED EPA CASTNET CONTRACT

GAINESVILLE, FL, Nov. 5, 2003 -- MACTEC Engineering & Consulting (MACTEC E&C; www.mactec.com) has been awarded a contract to operate CASTNet (Clean Air Status and Trends Network), a nationwide, 90-station air quality and meteorological monitoring network.

The contract, according to CASTNet Project Manager Kemp Howell, is a cost plus award fee one-year contract with four option years, not to exceed $24.06 million over five years.

"The primary objective of the program is assessing the status and trends in sulfur and nitrogen pollutants," Howell said. "Tracking these are important as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) relies on CASTNet to demonstrate the effectiveness of the emission reduction program by monitoring trends in air quality and acid deposition."

A team of 25 MACTEC scientists, engineers, technicians and support personnel is working on the project, with most personnel based in the firm's Gainesville and Jacksonville, FL offices.

Key program tasks include:

Filter pack sampling of gaseous and particulate sulfur and nitrogen pollutants
Chemical analysis of filters
Continuous measurements of ozone concentrations and meteorological conditions
Computer model simulations of atmospheric dry deposition
Database management of all measurements and supporting information
Monthly delivery of data to EPA