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Division for Air Quality - Recent Headlines
- Celebrate National Air Quality Awareness Week What you can do: It all adds up to cleaner air
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
FRANKFORT, Ky. (May 2, 2008) – The Kentucky Division for Air Quality works hard every day to help ensure clean air for all Kentuckians -- inspecting air pollution sources, responding to complaints from citizens, and maintaining a statewide monitoring network. But individuals also have a role to play in keeping our air clean. Every time you use energy -- whether burning wood, gasoline, diesel, or electricity -- you are contributing to air pollution in your community and those downwind of you.
Saving energy helps your pocketbook as well as your lungs. Here are a few tips to help you get started:
· The Division for Air Quality will be giving away energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs at the Governor’s Derby Breakfast in Frankfort on May 3; come by to get yours!
· Purchase ENERGY STAR- rated products, from light bulbs and appliances to home entertainment systems.
· Conserve electricity and set your air conditioner at a higher temperature.
· Keep your vehicle maintained and your tires properly inflated.
· Mow your lawn and refuel your vehicle during cooler morning and evening hours.
· Combine errands and reduce car trips whenever possible.
· Avoid burning trash, which is illegal and highly polluting.
If every Kentuckian took one or more of the above actions, the impact would be tremendous – because it all adds up to cleaner air! National Air Quality Week, April 28 – May 2, 2008, creates an opportunity for Kentuckians to “Be Air Aware.” Information on air quality is available at the division Web site, www.air.ky.gov.
- Celebrate National Air Quality Awareness Week “Current Air Quality Information at Your Fingertips”
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Editor’s note: National Air Quality Week is an opportunity for Kentuckians to become “air aware” and learn various aspects of air quality. The following article provides insight into the Air Quality Index.
FRANKFORT, Ky. (May 1, 2008) – Ever wonder if the air is clean enough to go for a run or work on your yard? The Air Quality Index, or AQI, is a color-coded system describing how clean or polluted the outdoor air is in a specific location. The system explains what health effects may result for the local population, focusing on effects a person might experience within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air.
For example, the AQI uses orange to mean that the air quality might be harmful to sensitive populations. However, sensitive populations are not just children, the elderly, or people with existing heart or lung conditions. Sensitive populations also include healthy adults who work or exercise outdoors. Generally, the AQI is calculated for either ozone or particle pollution, depending on which level is most prevalent. Being aware of air quality levels before going outside to exercise is vital to protecting your and your children’s health.
Especially on poor air quality days, the AQI can also remind you to “Do your Share for Cleaner Air” by remembering to turn off unused lights, electronics, and appliances. Other actions you can take include making the switch to compact fluorescents, tuning up your car, properly inflating your tires; and reducing, reusing, and recycling.
In Kentucky, the AQI is available in nearly real-time via phone or the Division for Air Quality website. The phone number is 1-800-AIR-IN_KY, and the website is www.air.ky.gov. Forecasted AQI levels are also available in Louisville and Lexington by visiting www.airnow.gov.
National Air Quality Week, April 28 – May 2, 2008 creates an opportunity for Kentuckians to “Be Air Aware.”
- Celebrate National Air Quality Awareness Week "What Affects My Air?"
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Editor’s note: National Air Quality Week is an opportunity for Kentuckians to become “air aware” and learn various aspects of air quality. The following article provides insight into ozone and particulate pollution.
FRANKFORT, Ky. (April 29, 2008) -- Air quality varies depending on weather conditions, sources of air pollution in your community, and pollutant transported by wind.
Ozone and particle-forming pollutants come from a number of sources. Mobile sources like cars and trucks account for over 25 percent of air pollution in the United States. In Kentucky, power plants, industry, and open burning are the largest sources of pollution in Kentucky. Illegal backyard burning is estimated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to be the largest non-point source of dioxin pollution in the United States. Dioxin is a toxic air pollutant that has been associated with cancer, birth defects, and nervous system damage, and is released when anything containing chlorine, like plastic, is burned. Natural sources like wildfires also contribute to particle pollution.
The role of weather cannot be underestimated when it comes to pollution. Winds carry pollution in and out of communities. Heat and sunlight promote the formation of ozone. Temperature inversions can trap pollution in an area for days on end.
To learn more about ozone and particle pollution, or to check on the air quality in your region, visit the Division for Air Quality website at www.air.ky.gov.
National Air Quality Week, April 28 – May 2, creates an opportunity for Kentuckians to “Be Air Aware.”
- Celebrate National Air Quality Awareness Week "Be Air Aware"
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
FRANKFORT, Ky. (April 28, 2008) -- National Air Quality Week, April 28 – May 2 creates an opportunity for Kentuckians to “Be Air Aware.”
There are many kinds of air pollution, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency calculates the Air Quality Index (AQI) for five major air pollutants regulated by the Clean Air Act. They are ground-level ozone, particle pollution, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. Ozone and particle pollution are the two most commonly found pollutants in Kentucky.
Ozone is a colorless and odorless gas. It is naturally occurring in the ozone layer of the atmosphere, where it protects humans and crops from the sun. At ground level, where we live, ozone is a man-made pollutant, is unhealthy to breathe, and can damage some crops, such as soybeans. Ground level ozone forms when pollutants from cars, trucks, power plants, industry, and some consumer products “cook” in the sun. Ozone usually peaks during the afternoon hours, when sunlight is most intense. The allowable limit for ozone has recently been made more stringent, so Kentuckians, especially those in urban areas, can expect to see more ozone AQI alerts this summer than they have in the past.
Particle pollution, also known as particulate matter, consists of microscopic particles in the air. It can be a problem in the summer or winter, depending on where you live. Particle pollution causes haze, blurring the view in many cities and national parks. Like ozone, particle pollution is unhealthy to breathe.
To learn more about ozone and particle pollution, or to check on the air quality in your region, visit the Division for Air Quality Web site at www.air.ky.gov.
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