Denver Metro Air Gets Mixed Grades in Annual American Lung Association Report Card
Denver, May 1, 2008— The Denver Metro area got a mixed report card for outdoor air pollution from the American Lung Association today. While Denver’s ozone pollution improved, the short-term particulate pollution worsened. The American Lung Association State of the Air 2008 found that 125 million Americans live in areas with dangerous air pollution levels, and warned that the trends show air pollution levels stalling at levels that are still dangerous to millions.
Unhealthful levels of particle pollution create serious, even life-threatening risks for many people, including children, teens and seniors, and people with asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
“Both our local scores and the national trends tell us that we have more work to do to protect our families and our neighbors from dangerous air pollution,” said Natalia Swalnick, air quality/Clean Cities manager for the American Lung Association of Colorado.
“Denver area residents are not yet breathing air that’s clean enough to be safe. Our State of the Air 2008 report proves that we can cut air pollution. We can’t settle for where we are now.”
The State of the Air 2008 grades show that Denver dropped from a D to an F in the area of short-term particulate pollution, compared to the 2007 report. “Particle pollution is the most dangerous of the widespread outdoor air pollutants,” Swalnick said. “It is typically made up of ash, soot, diesel exhaust, chemicals, metals and aerosols.” The City and County of Denver received the only failing grade for short-term particulate pollution as no other county in the state of Colorado received lower than a B in this category.
A great variance in air quality measurements was recorded over the entire metro area. Adams Country received an A for the level of ozone pollution in that area, while Jefferson County received a D for ozone pollution. However, this grade does reflect an improvement from the F that Jefferson County received in the American Lung Association State of the Air Report 2007. All of the counties in the Denver Metro area received a passing grade for long-term ozone pollution.
“If we were to measure the number of unhealthy days against the new ozone standard, it would show that ozone pollution is worse than the report suggests,” said Curt Huber, Executive Director of the American Lung Association of Colorado. “Even with these stricter ozone standards, Americans are being denied the health protection they deserve under the Clean Air Act”.
In the area of ozone pollution grading, Denver improved from a C to a B. The region’s ozone season, which typically occurs between June and August, will soon be upon us. Swalnick noted that “if you are burning gas or diesel, then you are contributing to harmful ozone precursors.” Tips for reducing contributions to ozone include filling the gas tank after dark, using battery or electric lawn equipment instead of gasoline-powered, and driving within the speed limit and reducing instances of aggressive acceleration. Regular vehicle maintenance and properly inflated tires can also greatly increase automobile efficiency, said Swalnick. The American Lung Association report used air pollution data from 2004-2006, collected by state air pollution control agencies and reviewed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The American Lung Association State of the Air 2008 ranks cities and counties most polluted by ozone (smog), short-term and year-round levels of particle pollution (soot, dust, and aerosols), which are the most widespread and dangerous forms of air pollution. Counties are graded A through F for each category. The report also shows trends in air pollution for ten years for the 25 most-polluted cities. The report exclusively grades the air quality of the region and does not weigh efforts by public, private and nonprofit agencies to improve these conditions. The report can be viewed at http://www.stateoftheair.org/2008/states/colorado/.
About American Lung Association of Colorado
For nearly 100 years, the American Lung Association of Colorado has been the state’s lead organization working to prevent lung disease and promote lung health. Lung disease death rates continue to increase while other leading causes of death have declined. The American Lung Association of Colorado funds vital research on the causes of and treatments for lung disease. With the generous support of the public, the American Lung Association of Colorado is “Improving life, one breath at a time.” For more information about the American Lung Association or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNG-USA or log on to www.lungcolorado.org.
