Environmental Justice Project: Air Quality

Ozone is a gas molecule made up of 3 Oxygen atoms. When most people think of Ozone, they think of the Ozone layer. The Ozone Layer is located in the stratosphere and it has an important role that is crucial for life on earth, including us humans!

Ozone can also be present as ground-level ozone, which is formed from synthetic or human-made sources. This type of ozone is regarded as an air pollutant.

Learn more about the difference between stratospheric and tropospheric Ozone in the Good Vs Bad Ozone section.

“Good ozone” is stratospheric ozone. The good ozone resides and stays in the stratosphere layer, which is the outermost layer of the Earth’s atmosphere. This ozone is called the Ozone Layer and it protects the earth from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) light.

“Bad ozone” is tropospheric ozone or “ground-level ozone.” This ground level ozone can cause adverse health effects if people or animals breathe it in for long periods of time. Ozone at ground-level is regarded as an air pollutant.

Ground-level ozone is the product of a chemical reaction that takes place between Nitrous Oxides (NO^x) and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in the atmosphere when exposed to sunlight.

Major contributors to the formation of ground-level ozone include emissions from cars, power plants, industrial boilers, refineries, and chemical plants, and even paints, cleaners, and motorized lawn equipment.

Breathing in Ozone can cause moderate to severe health complications.

People affected by asthma, children, senior citizens, or people who spend a lot of time outdoors are more at risk for potential health complications, but anyone can develop adverse symptoms.

Breathing in ground-level ozone can exacerbate preexisting respiratory conditions such as bronchitis or emphysema.

Short-term exposure to ozone can cause asthma attacks, shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing.

Long-term exposure can result in harm to the cardiovascular, respiratory, or nervous system.

You can take action to protect yourself from ground-level ozone by taking the following precautions:

Limit outdoor activity whenever the Air Quality Index (AQI) is listed as moderate to unhealthy levels.

Consider introducing or repairing an existing HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter in your home.

Use low VOC emitting products and paints in your household.

You can also help reduce the emissions of ozone-forming compounds.

Transportation and car exhaust is one of the main contributors of ozone in the lower atmosphere. Carpooling, avoiding engines that smoke, properly tuning engines on cars and boats, and making sure your tires are properly filled all will reduce the emissions of your car and ground-level ozone.

Electrical energy is another major source of ground-level ozone. You can help by implementing clean energy sources in your home or community. You can also help by conserving electricity usage by using any or all of the following tips.

Turn off the lights whenever you leave a room.

Set your thermostat a little lower in the winter and higher in the summer.

Use cold or cooler water when washing your clothes or dishes.

It is important to remember that anything you can do makes an impact. You are one part of a widespread solution that relies on everyone’s contribution.

Particulate Matter (shortened to PM) consists of anything that enters the airstream other than natural atmospheric gases.

PM 2.5 is a category of particles that are 2.5 microns in size or smaller. To put that into perspective, a single strand of hair is about 60 microns thick! PM can range from 2.5 to 10 microns.

PM 2.5 particles come in many different forms. Some natural forms of PM 2.5 include dust, sea salt, and ash from naturally occuring wildfires which get swept into the air from wind. Synthetic or human-made sources of PM 2.5 can originate from the combustion of coal, oil, biomasses (such as forest trees or grasses), diesel fuel, or gasoline, and waste from landfills and industrial complexes.

PM 10 particles can consist of pollen, spores from fungi, bacteria, or dust. Other forms of PM 10 can also appear as larger-sized byproducts from the same sources that also emit PM 2.5.

While there are many forms of Particulate Matter out there, only PM 2.5 poses health concerns, and is the focus of our study. This is because PM 2.5 is so small that our bodies often cannot prevent it from getting into our airways.

Usually, our nose hair and respiratory mucus captures PM and filters the air so we don’t breathe in anything that can be potentially harmful. Since PM 2.5 is so small, it can slip through our defenses, much like how fine sand can pass through a sieve, but larger rocks can’t.

Exposure to PM 2.5 can cause moderate to severe health complications. Short-term symptoms may include throat, lung, eye, or nose irritation, as well as shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, runny nose, or sneezing.

Long-term symptoms of PM 2.5 exposure can include higher rates of bronchitis, lung cancer, heart disease, hypertension, diminished lung function, and higher risk of catching most respiratory diseases.

You can protect yourself by taking the following precautions.

Limit outdoor activity whenever the Air Quality Index (AQI) is listed as moderate to unhealthy levels.

Consider introducing or repairing an existing HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter in your home.

You can also help reduce the amount of Particulate Matter that enters the air! Use the following tips to help keep the air clean.

Limit or eliminate fireplace and wood stove use.

Limit or eliminate using gas-powered lawn and garden equipment.

Avoid burning leaves, trash and other materials, especially on days when an air quality warning is announced.

It is important to remember that anything you can do makes an impact. You are one part of a widespread solution that relies on everyone’s contribution.