Lung Association gives area F on pollution
The St. Louis area received failing grades for outdoor air quality according to a report released last week by the American Lung Association.
“This report shows that people in the St. Louis area are being exposed to unhealthful levels of ozone and particle pollution,” said Michelle Bernth, vice president of Marketing & Advocacy for the American Lung Association.
“This pollution is a very serious problem for the health of families and children living in our area.”
The “American Lung Association State of the Air” ranks cities and counties most polluted by ozone, 24-hour particle pollution, and annual particle pollution, and reports county-by-county populations at risk from unhealthful levels of the most dangerous forms of air pollution.
The report gave the St. Louis region the following grades:
? St. Louis City: Ozone Pollution—F Particle Pollution—F
? St. Louis County: Ozone Pollution—F Particle Pollution—F
? St. Charles County: Ozone Pollution—F Particle Pollution—D.
“The increase in particle pollution is a particularly troubling trend,” said Bernth.
“Here in the St. Louis area, we certainly still have a long way to go to have air that is safe for everyone to breathe. Science clearly shows that air pollution is dangerous, even deadly, at levels we once thought were safe.”
While air pollution is unsafe for everyone, some people are at increased risk because of their age or health situation. Those groups include people with asthma, adults 65 and older, children under 18, people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD – chronic bronchitis and emphysema) and anyone with cardiovascular disease or diabetes.
Roughly one in three (more than 93.7 million) people in the United States lives in an area with unhealthful short-term levels of particle pollution, a significant increase since the last report, which is only partially due to the new, slightly lower threshold of unhealthful air recognized in this report (based on the newly adopted national standards).
Nearly one in five (more than 54 million) people in the United States lives in an area with unhealthful year-round levels of particle pollution.
“The American Lung Association is fighting for tougher federal standards because they protect Americans from dangerous levels of air pollution,” Bernth said.
“Air pollution shortens lifespan, it lands our children and elderly in emergency rooms, and it can make children and teens more vulnerable to lung disease for the rest of their lives.”
For more information, visit www.lungusa.org. While you’re there, you can send a message to the U.S. EPA to set more protective standards for ozone and other pollutants.