Clean Cars For Arizona News

PHOENIX—According to a new Clear the Air report released today by the Arizona Public Interest Research Group (Arizona PIRG), the state of Arizona had 15 smog days and the Phoenix metropolitan area had 12 smog days in 2003, ranking Arizona 13th among states and the Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale area 16th among major cities for the worst smog pollution in 2003.

"The Phoenix metropolitan area made the top 20 list that no city wants to be on," said Diane E. Brown, executive director of the Arizona Public Interest Research Group (Arizona PIRG). "Although our air quality continues to improve, the Phoenix area is polluted and children with asthma, senior citizens, and others with breathing problems are suffering the most," continued Brown.

According to the American Lung Association of Arizona, over 290,000 individuals in Maricopa County suffer from asthma. Bill Pfeifer, President and CEO for the American Lung Association of Arizona stated, "The American Lung Association welcomes the opportunity to create further awareness about the affects poor air quality has on the health of Arizonans. This is an issue that continually needs to be addressed in order to guarantee a healthy and safe environment for future generations."

"Danger in the Air: Unhealthy Levels of Air Pollution in 2003" is the state PIRGs' fifth annual analysis of air quality based on a survey of environmental agencies in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. For the first time, the report examines levels of fine particle "soot" pollution in addition to ozone "smog" pollution. National findings include:

• Smog levels in 40 states and the District of Columbia exceeded EPA's 8-hour health standard 4,583 times and the 1-hour health standard 684 times on 187 days in 2003. Ozone levels in 2003 were similar to those in 2000 and 2001; in contrast, 2002 was a hot and dry summer, leading to record high ozone levels. Smog burns the lungs and airways, affecting even a healthy person's ability to breathe and causing a host of respiratory problems, including asthma attacks, increased susceptibility to respiratory infections and decreased lung function.

• Soot levels exceeded EPA's year-round health standard in 53 metropolitan areas in 20 states in 2003, and soot levels exceeded EPA's 24-hour health standard 106 times on 39 days in 13 states. Soot is an even more dangerous pollutant because the tiny particles can lodge deep in the lungs or pass directly into the bloodstream, causing serious respiratory and cardiovascular problems, including heart attacks, lung cancer and premature death.

The report also includes preliminary smog data for 19 states and the District of Columbia for 2004, which, like 2003, has been a relatively mild and wet summer. Yet, ozone levels still exceeded EPA's 8-hour health standard 602 times and the 1-hour standard 84 times so far in 2004.

Coal-fired power plants and motor vehicles are the largest sources of these pollutants. This report comes as federal decision makers plan to weaken air protections in parks and wilderness areas, let power plants emit 1.5 times more smog- and soot-forming pollution than the Clean Air Act allows, and delay the full effect until 2015.

"The decisions being made in Washington, D.C., have very real consequences for our air here in Arizona," stated Brown. "We cannot let the public bear the consequences in the form of respiratory disease. We call on federal decision makers to protect public health by reducing, not increasing, smog and soot," Brown continued.

While the federal government is poised to weaken clean air protections, Arizona PIRG pointed to efforts by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality to reduce air emissions. These efforts include advisories which are issued when pollution levels have reached a point at which people need to be advised of potential health impacts and limit their outdoor activity; the vehicle emissions inspection program which is designed to reduce levels of smog; and a program for cleaner burning gasoline.

"The programs of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality to improve air quality are steps in the right direction," said Brown. "We encourage state decision-makers to continue their efforts to prevent air pollution by shifting to cleaner sources of energy and promoting a reduction in vehicle emissions," Brown concluded.