Air Quality

Index
How Healthy is the Air You Breathe?

Air Pollution...
Definition: The presence of one or
more harmful chemicals in the
atmosphere

Air Pollution...
May cause harm to people,
animals, vegetation, or
materials, or may alter
climate
Concentration (quantity) and
duration are determinants of
level of harm

How Does Air

Pollution Affect Us?
Humans breathe in 6-10 liters of air
per minute
Harmful chemicals may be absorbed quickly without
us being aware

Air pollutants come into contact first

with our respiratory systems, so the
lungs are most affected
by this pollution
Air pollution may also
affect the
Heart
Circulatory system
Immune system

Who Does Air

Pollution Affect?
The very young are at risk
Lungs are not fully developed until age 18
They have a faster breathing rate

The very old are at risk

May have undiagnosed lung or heart disease
Pollution can exacerbate these conditions

Persons with chronic illnesses, especially

those with respiratory, circulatory, or
cardiac disease, are also at risk

Does Air Pollution

Affect Anyone Else?
Yes,

EVERYONE!

Even healthy
persons can be
affected when they
exercise outdoors,
or if the
concentration of
pollutants is very
high

How Do We Know When the

Air is Polluted and
Unsafe?
Air pollution may be colorless or
odorless, thus hard to detect
Air pollution may be obvious, as a
brown or yellow haze, or with
particulates in the air
By the time pollution is obvious,
it may be at very unhealthy levels

What Causes Air

Pollution? Nature
Air pollution may occur due
to natural processes
volcanoes

fires

dust

pollen &
spores

This pollution is dispersed

over a wide area, and is
usually not as hazardous as
other pollution

What Else Causes

Air Pollution?
People! Air pollution may also
occur due to human activities
Called anthropogenic sources
Stationary sources, such as
power plants or industry
Mobile sources, such as
vehicles

Because it is
Sometimes Difficult
to Know...
To protect public health, the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
monitors 5 air pollutants in what is
called the Air Quality Index (AQI)
Ground-level Ozone (O)
Particulate Matter (Particle
Pollution)
< 2.5 microns
< 10 microns
Carbon Monoxide (CO)
Sulfur Dioxide (SO)
Nitrogen Dioxide (NO)

How Values to
Calculate AQI are
Generated
Monitors record the average
concentration for each of the
air pollutants
The time recorded varies by
pollutant
In some circumstances, models
are used to determine values
for AQI

How AQI is
Calculated
An equation is used with the
pollution concentration data
and an AQI break-point table
See http://www.epa.gov/airnow/aqi_tech_assistance.pdf for
details

AQI is calculated for each

pollutant
The pollutant with the highest
AQI determines the level for
the day, and is noted as the
responsible pollutant

AQI Values
AQI values range from 0-500
The higher the AQI, the greater the air
pollution and health concerns
An AQI of 100 corresponds to the national
air quality standard for that pollutant
A value <100 is generally considered satisfactory
and not a health hazard
A value >100 indicates air quality may be
unhealthy for some groups
A value >300 represents very hazardous air
quality

What are Common

AQI Levels?
AQI levels are generally 0-100 in most U.S.
communities
AQI >100 may occur only a few times of
year, if at all
Some U.S. metropolitan areas have greater
pollution and thus AQIs >100
AQIs >200 are rare in the U.S.
In other countries with dense population
areas, uncontrolled sources of pollution,
and fewer governmental emission
restrictions, AQIs are frequently >250

AQI Categories
AQI values are converted
to a category for easier
understanding by the
public
Categories consider
the public health
impacts of the
pollution level
A color code is used
to associate the
actions to be taken at
that level

AQI Chart

AQI Reporting
Metropolitan
Statistical
Areas (MSAs)
with populations
>350,000 are
required by
Federal law to
report the AQI
daily to the
general public

AQI Distribution
AQI may be
distributed:
To media
Newspapers
Radio
Television

Provided as a
recorded telephone
message
Published on an
Internet site that
is accessible to
the public

The AQI Report

Provides data on current days air
quality and may include the nexts
days air quality forecast
MUST include:
Reporting area
Reporting period
Critical pollutant
AQI

The AQI Report

MUST Also Include...
Information on specific health
concerns for certain populations
Descriptor must be used:
Good through Hazardous
Color Code must be noted:
Green through Maroon

Cautions for sensitive groups

for any pollutants with an AQI
over 100

Pollutant Specific
Sensitive Groups
If AQI >100...

Then these sensitive

groups
must be cautioned:

Ozone

People with lung disease,

children, older adults, and
people who are active outdoors

PM2.5

People with heart or lung

disease, children, and older
adults

PM10

People with heart or lung

disease, children, and older
adults

CO
SO

People with heart disease

People with asthma

Action Days
Action Days are called when the AQI is
in the unhealthy range.
Individual agencies/cities determine at
what level to call Action Days
Some use Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
or Code Orange
Sensitive groups should avoid prolonged or heavy
outdoor exertion outdoors

Other cities use Unhealthy or Code Red

People should avoid prolonged or heavy outdoor
exertion outdoors

Other Preventative
Actions
High levels of AQI may trigger
various restrictions or
prohibitions by local governments
to protect the public health
Officials consider:
Current pollutant concentrations
Prevailing weather conditions
Forecasted weather conditions

Possible High
AQI Actions
Levels above 200 may cause
an Alert stage
Activities restricted may
include incinerator use or
open burning of leaves or
refuse

Possible High AQI

Actions
Levels above 200 may cause an
Alert stage
Activities restricted may include incinerator
use or open burning of leaves or refuse

Levels above 300 may trigger a

Warning stage
Incinerator use may be prohibited, power
plant operations cut back, specific
manufacturing operations curtailed, and
public driving limited with public
transportation and carpooling encouraged

AQI Emergency Actions

Levels above 400 would be an
Emergency
Would require most industrial and
commercial activity to cease, and
almost all private vehicle use to
cease
Death would occur in some very
sensitive individuals
Sensitive individuals might be
hospitalized
Healthy persons would probably
experience symptoms that would
restrict normal activities

Seasonal
Variations in AQI
Winter
CO may be highest level pollutant
Vehicle emission control systems do not
operate as well in cold weather
Levels are generally highest during morning or
evening rush hours

Summer
VOCs and NOx form ozone more rapidly in the
presence of heat and sunlight
Levels peak in the afternoon

Smog/Ozone
Season
Smog/Ozone Season is
generally May to September
March 1- October 31 in Georgia

Ozone may not be reported in

other months unless the level
is high or the season is
longer for that area

Ozone Standards
EPA strengthened air quality
standards for ground-level
ozone in March, 2008
Ground-level ozone is a primary
component of smog

Lower levels of ozone are now

reported as unhealthy in AQI
and daily smog forecasts

Particle
Pollution Maps
Available year-round for some
cities
Some state and local agencies
are not yet
participating
in this program

EPA Proposal for Stronger

NO Air Quality Standards
06/29/2009 Proposal to update standards to
reflect newest findings of NO exposure on
public health
Propose to monitor NO levels for a shorter time
period
Recent research indicates that short-term exposure to
high NO levels, ranging from 30 minutes to 24 hours, may
increase respiratory problems, especially in persons with
asthma, children, or the elderly.

Propose to monitor within 50 meters of major

roadways in cities with at least 350,000
residents
Often a higher concentration of NO near major roadways
than at monitoring stations

Proposal decision on new standard required by

Jan. 22, 2010

Other
Considerations
AQI levels are not the only
factors in determining how
healthy the air is in a
place- other factors include:
Transportation patterns
Industrial composition
Location of monitoring
sites
Weather patterns, such as inversions

One Last
Consideration...
Synergism of pollutants has not been
fully studied
Combinations of pollutants may increase
harmful effects
Combinations of pollutants may cause harmful
effects to occur at lower levels
Combinations of pollutants may cause new or
currently unknown problems

EPA will likely modify the AQI as

more research is available in this
area

Air Quality Index

(AQI) Summary
The AQI is:
Used to protect public
health
Used to determine
appropriate activities for
people, industry, and
commerce
Calculated from monitored
values of 5 major pollutants
An effective tool to
determine how well Clean Air
Act standards are being met
by our communities