OUTDOOR AIR
QUALITY
Mostly during the summer and early fall months, the Maryland
Department of the Environment (MDE) and the Metropolitan Washington
Council of Governments (COG) will issue air quality forecasts
that may include ground level ozone warnings, which are announced
by local television and radio stations.
Ozone is created by chemical reactions mainly between certain
air-borne organic compounds and nitrogen oxides in the presence
of sunlight and high temperatures.� Various sources attribute
motor vehicle pollution for between 20-40% of the ozone-causing
pollutants in the Baltimore-Washington area.
Unhealthy concentrations can occur when weather is hot and sunny
with little to no wind, and the highest ozone concentrations
occur between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m.� High concentrations of ozone
can cause headaches, shortness of breath, coughing, and inflammation
or irritation of the respiratory tract, especially during heavy
physical activity.� People with certain respiratory ailments
(bronchitis, asthma, colds, pnuemonia) may have even more trouble
breathing when the air is polluted.� Not everyone is sensitive
to ground-level ozone.
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Air quality
alerts are broken into four categories,
based on the air quality index provided by MDE
and COG.
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For more information about this region's
ozone "action days" and alerts, you can check:
MDE-- http://www.mde.state.md.us/Air/index.asp
COG -- http://www.mwcog.org/environment/air/forecast/
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