The Science Might Be Clear After 50 Years. . . It Takes Way More Than That Here in Maricopa County

“The science is clear: the nation needs stronger limits on ozone and particle pollution to safeguard health, especially for children and people with lung disease,”

 -- American Lung Association President and CEO Harold Wilmer
“Every family has the right to breathe healthy air – and the right to know when air pollution levels are unhealthy . . ."

OK________________________________________________________________________________

 

Maricopa County’s air quality is awful. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Arizona Mirror | 2020-10-09T13:56:40+00:00 ___________________________________________________________________________________

Each year, “State of the Air” reports on the two most widespread outdoor air pollutants, ozone pollution and particle pollution. Each is dangerous to public health and can be lethal. The 2020 “State of the Air” report found that more than 20.8 million people lived in counties that had unhealthy levels of air pollution in all categories from 2016 to 2018. Below are the report findings for each category graded. 

Top 10 Most Ozone-Polluted Cities:

1. Los Angeles-Long Beach, California
2. Visalia, California
3. Bakersfield, California
4. Fresno-Madera-Hanford, California
5. Sacramento-Roseville, California
6. San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, California
7. Phoenix-Mesa, Arizona
8. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, California
9. Las Vegas-Henderson, Nevada
10. Denver-Aurora, Colorado

Top 10 U.S. Cities Most Polluted by Year-Round Particle Pollution (Annual PM_2.5):

1. Bakersfield, California
2. Fresno-Madera-Hanford, California
3. Visalia, California
4. Los Angeles-Long Beach, California
5. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, California
6. Fairbanks, Alaska
7. Phoenix-Mesa, Arizona
8. El Centro, California
9. Pittsburgh-New Castle-Weirton, PA-OH-WV
10. Detroit-Warren-Ann Arbor, Michigan

Top 10 U.S. Cities Most Polluted by Short-term Particle Pollution (24-hour PM_2.5):

1. Fresno-Madera-Hanford, California
2. Bakersfield, California
3. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, California
4. Fairbanks, Alaska
5. Yakima, Washington
6. Los Angeles-Long Beach, California
7. Missoula, Montana
8. Redding-Red Bluff, California
9. Salt Lake City-Provo-Orem, Utah
10. Phoenix-Mesa, Arizona