Marcie Frazier

English 2010
2-18-19

Highlights:
 Air Quality and your
Health
 Air Quality in Utah
 Where does pollution
comes from?
 What is Utah doing to
improve the air?
 Air Quality Index
 Types of Air Pollutants

SpeicallyAsinSpecies 10 – Imgur – 2017

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 AIR QUALITY HEALTH
Many people take precautions
every day when it comes to their
health, like getting vaccinated,
eating organic, yearly physicals,
and so on. However, you don’t
often hear people talking about
the air they are breathing and
how it can also have effects on
their health and what they are
doing to take precautions against
it.
The air we breathe is very
important to our health and
breathing polluted air have both
short- and long-term effects, like
Betty Dabney - Rivard Report – 2016
AIR QUALITY IN UTAH
The poor air in Utah is a known
issue and discussed not only
locally, but also nationally. While,
the geography location and
weather does play a part on the
poor air quality in Utah, it’s not
the only factor.
The cold weather causes
temperature inversion, which
instead of warmer air being on
the surface, the cold air is
trapped near the surface, and the
cold and warm air do not mix
causing unhealthy toxins to
asthma, allergies, lung cancer,
heart disease, respiratory
infections, pneumonia, bronchitis,
reproductive issues and more.
There can also be long term
effects that could cause a shorter
life expectancy. The longer air
pollution is tracked, the more
effects will be revealed.1
Like weather, the air quality can
change daily. The EPA came up
with the Air Quality Index (AQI so
the air quality can be tracked
checked so you can try to avoid
these effects. 2
11
become trapped. A strong storm
or low-pressure system is
needed to clear out this
inversion. In addition to the cold
air, the mountains also prevent
winds to come in and blow out
this inversion.
In Utah, there are usually five to
six multiday inversion episodes
with an average of 18 days
exceeding the National Ambient
Air Quality Standard (NAAQS).3
Rick Bowmer - Associated Press12 – 2013
What can you
do to help?
 Conserve Energy by
turning of lights,
computers and appliances
 Set your thermostat a little
warmer in the summer and
cooler in the winter
 Use Energy Efficient light
bulbs, electronics and
appliances
 Limit driving and try
carpooling, public
transportation, biking and
walking
 Combine errands and trips
 Maintain your vehicle
 Avoid idling your vehicle
when it’s not necessary
 Use and purchase electric
lawn tools
 Run dishwasher and

washing machine when full
Use environmentally
friendly home cleaners.
 Encourage others to do the
same.4
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New York Times13– 2013
Where does pollution come from?
“The air that we People not only think that not
breathe is very inversion is to blame for
pollution, but that the number of
important for manufacturing and refinery
our health.” plants in Utah are the reason for
the poor air quality. However, the
Utah Department of
Environmental Quality found that
fifty percent of pollutants come
from vehicles, which is the
largest contributor. Only thirteen
percent comes from
manufacturing and refinery
plants.5
What is Utah doing to improve the air?
In 2018, the United States
Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) gave seven counties in
Utah three years to lower the
ozone pollution because they
exceed the federal limits for
ozone. However, they stated that
Utah is already on the right track
to meet the 2021 deadline.
The state has 30 new rules that
reduce emissions. There is also a
solar energy boom throughout
Deseret News14 - 2017
There are items like hairspray,
carpet cleaner, and air fresheners
can contribute to Utah’s poor air.
In common products like paints,
varnishes, preservatives, waxes,
dry cleaning, polishes, automotive
products, vinyl flooring, wall
coverings can release Volatile
Organic Compounds (VOC) into
the air and they contribute to the
formation of fine particulates. The
EPA has a program called Design
for the Environment that screens
and identifies these products.6
Utah and the state has helped in
part by offering tax credits.
While, the State and Federal
government are trying to do their
part to contribute to improve the
Utah air. They also encourage
people to do what they can to
contribute, especially with the
growing population throughout
the state.7
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Air Quality Index
The Air Quality Index (AQI) is used
to report the daily air quality. It also
provides you information about how
clean or dirty the air is around you
along with health affects you may
have depending on levels.
It ranges from 0 to 500 and the
higher the AQI number the higher
level of air pollution and more
health concerns. The EPA has
established these national air
quality standards to protect the
health.8
Types of Air Pollutants
The EPA calculates six different
types of pollutants. These
include ground-level ozone,
particle matter, lead, carbon
monoxide, sulfur dioxide and
nitrogen dioxide, which are all
air pollutants that are regulated
by the Clean Air Act.9
Ground- Level Ozone is the
bad part of the ozone because it
triggers many health problems,
especially in sensitive groups
like children, elderly, and those
with lung diseases.
Particular Matter (PM) is a
term for the mixture of solid
particles and liquid droplets in
the air. You can see some with
the naked eye, while others
need a microscope. There are
Air Quality Basics8 – www.airnow.gov
inhalable particles called PM10
and fine inhalable particles called
PM2.5. The numerals describe the
size of the particles in
micrometers. The cause health
problems when inhaled and are
the main cause of haze in the
United States.
Carbon Monoxide (CO) is
colorless and odorless and
harmful when inhaled in large
amounts. It’s released when
someone is burned, like fossil
fuels in vehicles.
Lead emissions can also pollute
the air, which mostly come from
metals processing and leaded
aviation fuel. The highest
concentrations of lead are usually
near lead smelters.
Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) is the
component that is the biggest
concern and is used as the
indicator for larger group of
gaseous sulfur oxides. The
largest source of SO2 are fossil
fuel combustion from power
plants and other industrial plants.
Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) is
one of a group of highly reactive
gases known as oxides of
nitrogen. It gets into the air from
the burning of fuel. It forms from
the emissions of vehicles, power
plants, and off-road equipment.9.
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Sources

1. Environmental Pollution, Volume 151, Issue 2, January 2008, Pages 362-367

2. “Your Health.”, AirNow.gov, www.airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=topics.health.

3. “Inversions.” Utah Department of Environmental Quality, deq.utah.gov/legacy/pollutants/p/particulate-matter/inversions.htm.

4. Kirkham, Courtney. “Say No to Inversion: Tips on How You Can Improve Air Quality Right Now.” Intermountainhealthcare.org, 27 Oct. 2017,
intermountainhealthcare.org/blogs/topics/live-well/2016/12/air-quality/.

5. Utah Department of Environmental Quality. “Debunking Utah's Most Common Air Quality Myths.” KUTV,
kutv.com/sponsored/ucair/debunking-utahs-most-common-air-quality-myths.

6. “Sources of Emissions.” UCAIR, www.ucair.org/sources-of-emissions/.

7. Penrod, Emma. “Feds Give Utah Three Years to Bring Ozone Pollution down to Acceptable Levels.” The Salt Lake Tribune,
www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2018/05/01/feds-give-utah-three-years-to-bring-ozone-pollution-down-to-acceptable-levels/.

8. “Air Quality Index (AQI) Basics.” Home Page | AirNow.gov, 2016, www.airnow.gov/index.cfm?action=aqibasics.aqi.

9. “Criteria Air Pollutants.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, 8 Mar. 2018, www.epa.gov/criteria-air-pollutants.

10. SpeciallyAsInSpecies. “Air Quality in SLC, Utah.” Imgur, 2017, imgur.com/gallery/3qQEf.

11. Dabney, Betty. “Rivard and Public Health .” Rivard and Public Health , 2013, therivardreport.com/transportation-and-public-health-an-
urbanist-conundrum/.

12. Bowmer, Rick. “Associated Press.” High Country News, 2013, www.hcn.org/issues/45.22/obamas-most-effective-environmental-action.

13. Winterton, Scott G. “Seen as Nature Lovers’ Paradise, Utah Struggles With Air Quality.” New York Times, 2013,
www.nytimes.com/2013/02/24/us/utah-a-nature-lovers-haven-is-plagued-by-dirty-air.html.

14. O'Donoghue, Amy Joi. “EPA Report: The Air We Breathe Is Getting Cleaner.” DeseretNews.com, Deseret News, 2 Aug. 2018,
www.deseretnews.com/article/900026809/epa-report-the-air-we-breathe-is-getting-cleaner.html.

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