WNYT in Albany reports that, despite all the social media speculation, experts say there is no sign that the air quality locally has been affected by the derailment of a train three weeks ago in Ohio. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation says it has not observed any human impact from the disaster locally, but said they are monitoring the air and water here. DEC meteorologists are watching air flow patterns, and DEC scientists are also analyzing samples being taken from ambient air monitoring stations. Dr. Max Zhang, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Cornell University, said there was no indication of an impact on New York’s air, saying, “What’s happening in Ohio, those are isolated, a short duration event, not as a big power plant, running 24/7, continuously, right.... So that’s why, even though locally residents have been affected […] based on what I understand so far, there’s no concern for accumulations.” The New York State Mesonet monitoring system said Feb. 21 has not picked up any ‘abnormalities’ in the air, according to a spokesperson for UAlbany. But all those experts did not reassure Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin, who has made it clear for several years that he reads conspiracy theories on social media. He asked the EPA on Feb. 21 to set up air quality monitoring in the county to test for any residue of the Feb. 3 train accident in Ohio. Read the full story at WNYT.