EPA Says Iowa Meets Tougher Ozone Smog Standards

DES MOINES – Iowa again is in an elite crowd. Just 18 states meet federal outdoor air standards for ground level ozone, the main ingredient found in smog, the EPA and state officials announced today.

Part or all of 474 counties and some 159 million Americans live in areas that fail to meet ozone smog standards. Governors in 31 states must prepare plans to reduce ground-level ozone for those areas that failing to meet the standards set in 1997.

For ground level ozone, the vast majority of Iowa days rate “good” to “moderate” air quality. Several days of unhealthy levels of ozone are measured in Iowa each year, but the days are infrequent enough to allow the state to maintain its clean air status.

On those rare days of unhealthy air, the DNR issues health advisories. The levels potentially can impact sensitive groups, such as persons with asthma and other respiratory problems, children and active adults if they are out of doors for prolonged periods and breathing large volumes of air during play, exercise or work.

Ground level ozone forms when tailpipe exhaust and smokestack emissions react in bright sunshine and warm weather with fumes and chemical vapors. The chemical can burn the lining of the lungs, cause premature aging of lung tissue and increase respiratory symptoms.

The ozone smog season in Iowa runs from April to late October, when state officials monitor the air for the pollutant.

Current ozone smog levels are available for Iowa at www.iowacleanair.com and nationally at www.epa.gov/airnow.

For more information, contact the DNR’s Brian Button at 515-281-7832.