Ozone Advisory extended through Thursday for low air quality
Due to extreme heat continuing through Thursday, South Coast Air Quality Management District has extended the Ozone Advisory through Thursday afternoon. SQAQMD said on top of the heat producing elevated levels of ground ozone (smog), "Wildfires, which produce chemicals that help to form ozone, may also contribute to increased ozone levels."
Due to extreme heat continuing through Thursday, South Coast Air Quality Management District has extended the Ozone Advisory through Thursday afternoon. SQAQMD said on top of the heat producing elevated levels of ground ozone (smog), "Wildfires, which produce chemicals that help to form ozone, may also contribute to increased ozone levels."
Philip Fine, the deputy executive officer with South Coast Air Quality Management District said, "We get unhealthy levels for ozone every summer, many days every summer. We have the worst ozone pollution in the country. But, we saw some individual hours that were very high and even unusual." On Monday, air quality levels reached the highest recorded since 2011 for areas in San Bernardino county. Fine added, "It’s just the combination of this heatwave we are seeing as well as the input from the wildfires." Wildfires also produce chemicals that help in the formation of ozone.
Find mentioned that air quality levels in the Coachella Valley are generally lower than levels up wind, meaning they are not as bad as the levels seen in places like San Bernardino county. However, Fine said, "The ozone levels in Coachella Valley are primarily due to all the emissions we have upwind."
The forecast for Coachella Valley air quality through this advisory remains at Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups. Other areas in Southern California are expected to reach Very Unhealthy levels.
With ozone, Fine added, "It’s a pollutant and has respiratory impacts. So if you have a pre-existing respiratory condition like emphysema, bronchitis, it can really exacerbate those symptoms." If levels get high enough everyone can experience symptoms of shortness of breath, not just those more sensitive.
Staying indoors and limiting outdoor excersizes during this time keeps you safe from the heat and exposure to ozone. Fine said, "When that air comes in from outside, those chemical reactions stop. So ozone goes way down when you’re indoors."
Masks that are being work outdoors to help with COVID are not helpful when it comes to ozone. Fine explained, "Ozone is a gas and so these masks aren’t going to filter out a gas like that."
News Channel 3's Taban Sharifi will have the full story tonight at 10 p.m. and 11 p.m.
If you want to receive air quality information on a daily basis, you can set that up through South Coast Air Quality Management Districts website or download their app for iPhone or Android.
