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"State of the Air Report 2000"

© Floyd Tilton

Living out here on the Great Plains, air quality is something I rarely think of, but for someone living in a large metropolitan area, it becomes a matter of great concern. In some cities, the air quality has deteriorated to the point that it is unsafe for people without lung disease to breathe, let alone someone with emphysema, asthma or chronic bronchitis, the three illnesses that make up the broad category of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. To many people's surprise, however, it isn't just metropolitan cities that have substandard air quality. Many small towns in rural areas have this same problem.

Pollutants, such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and other such contaminants have been linked not only to COPD, but to heart disease and other serious medical conditions as well. Surprisingly, however, these are not the worst causes of air pollution. The worst cause is Ozone, according to the American Lung Association. We've heard for years about the depletion of the Ozone layer in the atmosphere and how that threatens our environment. This layer protects the earth from harmful radiation and helps to maintain the balance of nature on earth. When Ozone is found in high concentrations at ground level, however, it is an even more serious problem than carbon monoxide, the gas found in exhaust emissions. According to information from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over 135 million people live in areas of the United States where the air quality is so bad that it failed air quality standards established to monitor the condition. According to Bob Perciasepe, a senior official with the EPA,"This verifies what we also know: that too many people are exposed to unhealthy air in the United States."

The American Lung Association collected data on Ozone levels for a three year period, 1996, 1997 and 1998, and after analysis released their "State of the Air 2000". This report listed the worst and best cities in the United States in descending order, based on their scores on several criteria. In addition, the ALA provided a map of the United States which reports the worst air quality regions in each state.

The report grades metropolitan areas on their ozone data for 1996, 1997 and 1998. Below are the 25 metropolitan areas with the worst ozone pollution for those years, ranked in the order of their scores, with the worst-air places at the top. Areas with the best ozone records are listed alphabetically.

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