New Lung Assn. report says Oregon air quality worsened

The American Lung Association’s 2016 “State of the Air” report released Wednesday found Lake County ranked as the 20 th most polluted county in the nation for short-term particle pollution.

Several counties in Oregon saw increased days of ozone pollution, in spite of a trend seen across the nation of lower ozone and particle pollution levels, the report said.

Each year, the “State of the Air” reports on the two most widespread outdoor air pollutants, ozone pollution (also known as smog) and particle pollution (soot).

The report analyzes particle pollution in two ways: through average annual particle pollution levels and short-term spikes in particle pollution.

Both ozone and particle pollution are dangerous to public health and can be lethal. This year’s report covers data collected in 2012-2014.

Deschutes County got an A grade on “high ozone days,” as it had none — Crook and Jefferson counties do not have monitors for that data. Crook County got an F grade for short-term particle pollution — and neither Deschutes nor Jefferson have monitors for that, the organization said.

Ozone Pollution

Compared to the 2015 report (2011-2013), Clackamas, Jackson, Marion, Umatilla and Washington counties experienced more unhealthy days of high ozone in this year’s report. These counties were downgraded from As to Bs in this year’s report. While ozone in Oregon has been comparatively low in years past, higher summer temperatures and air stagnation events due to climate change will make unhealthy levels of ozone more common.

“Ozone is harmful to public health and especially children, older adults and those with asthma and other lung diseases,” said Carrie Nyssen, Vice President of Advocacy and Air Quality for the American Lung Association of the Mountain Pacific. “When older adults or children with asthma breathe ozone-polluted air, too often they end up in the doctor’s office, the hospital or the emergency room.”

Nationwide, ozone pollution has decreased because the nation has cleaned up major sources of the emissions that create ozone, especially coal-fired power plants and vehicles.

Particle Pollution

Particle pollution remains a challenge for Oregon’s air quality. “Particle pollution is made of soot or tiny particles that come from coal-fired power plants, diesel emissions, wildfires and wood-burning devices. These particles are so small that they can lodge deep in the lungs and trigger asthma attacks, heart attacks and strokes, and can even be lethal,” said Nyssen.

The 2016 report tracked short-term spikes in particle pollution, as these can be extremely dangerous and even lethal. According to the 2016 report, Crook and Josephine counties had more days when short-term particle pollution has reached unhealthy levels in 2012-2014.

Five counties in Oregon received failing grades for short-term particle pollution – Crook, Jackson, Klamath, Lake and Lane. This is in spite of a trend seen across the nation of short-term spikes in particle pollution.

Increased heat, changes in weather patterns, drought and wildfires are all related to climate change, which has contributed to the extraordinarily high numbers of days with unhealthy particle pollution in some cities. Many of these spikes were directly linked to weather patterns like drought or to events like wildfires, which are likely to increase because of climate change and high emissions from wood-burning devices.

Fewer than half of Oregon’s counties host monitoring equipment for ozone and particulate matter, a deficit similar to the rest of the nation. We know that urban areas are at greater risk from ozone formed by high temperatures from the heat-island effect. About 80$ of Oregon’s population lives in urban areas.

“If we can do more to save lives—we should, and we can,” Nyssen said. “The Lung Association of the Mountain Pacific calls on Oregon to continue supporting and implementing policies to reduce harmful emissions that worsen climate change and harm our health.

“Oregon has been a leader in implementing health-focused programs like the Clean Fuels Program,” said Nyssen. “Programs like clean fuels, and taking steps to remove coal from our energy profile are steps that our good for our health, our families and our communities.”

Learn more about Oregon’s rankings, as well as air quality across nation in the 2016 “State of the Air” report at stateoftheair.org.