Dane County Clean Air Coalition: Dane County shows improvement on some air quality measures but needs to continue efforts for healthier air

According to American Lung Association’s State of the Air 2010 Report

Contact: Lisa MacKinnon, Project Coordinator, (608) 266-9063 or (608) 335-5193 (cell)

The American Lung Association (ALA) released its State of the Air 2010 report today, showing that Dane County’s air quality “grade” has improved since last year’s report. The report finds that across the nation, “a decade of cleanup measures to reduce emissions from coal-fired powered plants and the transition to cleaner diesel fuels and engines have paid off in cutting levels of deadly particle and ozone pollution, especially in eastern and midwestern U.S. cities.” The report, found at http://www.stateoftheair.org, provides an annual national air quality “report card,” based on the color-coded Air Quality Index (AQI), to assign grades to counties.

The 2010 report, based on data from 2006-2008, gives Dane County a grade of “C” for ozone and an “F” for fine particle pollution levels for having an average of 5 high ozone days and 12 high particle pollution days (days in the “orange” or “unhealthy for sensitive groups” AQI category) during that period. In comparison, the 2009 State of the Air report issued Dane County “F” grades for both ozone and fine particle pollution based on 2005-2007 data showing 10 and 14 high ozone and particle pollution days, respectively. And the 2007-2009 pollution levels for Dane County show further improvements (for instance, Dane County had no 8-hour ozone “exceedance” days in 2009).

“This latest report reflects what the Dane County Clean Air Coalition has been conveying to the public over the last several years. While these grades don’t put Dane County at the top of the class for clean air, Dane County’s air quality has been improving over the last few years and currently meets state and federal standards”, said Lisa MacKinnon, Coordinator for the Dane County Clean Air Coalition. “But, as the county continues to grow and U.S. EPA continues to create more stringent public health standards for air quality, we all need to step up our actions for healthier air. And 2010 will be a critical year for Dane County because the U.S. EPA is getting ready to create even more strict public health standards for both ozone and fine particle pollution.”

MacKinnon credits a number of voluntary emission reduction actions on the part of Clean Air Coalition members and the public — such as reductions in coal burning for electric generation, energy conservation measures and cleaner transportation choices — for some of the improvements, and urges Dane County residents and business to continue these efforts. “We ask residents, businesses, government agencies and institutions in the County to join us in taking further voluntary actions that will reduce fine particle and ozone emissions, protect the health of local residents and help ensure that Dane County continues to comply with all federal air quality standards. We can all do our share for healthier air,” said MacKinnon.