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NATIONWIDE AND REGIONAL ANALYSIS, CONT'D...
Still, the problems in the Southeast remain extremely serious. Seven of the 25 most ozone-polluted counties in the nation are in Region 4. Sevier County, Tennessee, was the 12 th most ozone-polluted county. Rowan County, North Carolina moved to a worse position this year, at number 16, from its ranking at number 22 in last year’s report. Mecklenberg County, North Carolina came in at 19, improved from 12th worst last year. Four counties in Georgia made the list of the 25 most ozone-polluted counties this year: Fulton County was 11th on the national list, while DeKalb County was the 21st, and Henry (new to the list) and Rockdale Counties were tied for 22nd.
Ten of the nation’s 25 most-ozone polluted metropolitan areas are in the Southeast, as well. Atlanta was the 8 th most ozone-polluted city this year (improved from number 6 last year). Knoxville, Tennessee was number 9 on that list, while Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, North Carolina/South Carolina was 10th. Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point, North Carolina was 17th, while Memphis, Tennessee and Birmingham, Alabama were tied for 18th place (along with San Diego). Nashville, Tennessee, was 21st, and Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, North Carolina was 22nd. Macon, Georgia was 24th and Louisville, Kentucky, 25th.
Region 5: Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota
Illinois saw grade improvements in five counties in this year’s report compare with the 2002 assessment; in Wisconsin seven counties received lower grades. The Duluth-Superior metropolitan area in Minnesota/Wisconsin and Elkhart-Goshen, Indiana, made the list of the top 20 metropolitan areas with the least ozone air pollution, as did Fargo-Moorhead, North Dakota/Minnesota. None of the states in this region had counties on the list of the 25 most ozone-polluted counties or cities.
Region 6: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, and New Mexico
Three Texas counties received better grades in this year’s report, while one received a lower grade. Four counties in Oklahoma jumped at least one grade over the 2002 report, while four other counties that had incomplete monitoring data for the last years’ report earned Fs in this year’s report. Harris County, Texas, was the sixth-most ozone-polluted county for the third report in a row; Tarrant County jumped from number 37 in last year’s report to number 19 this year.
Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, Texas was the fifth most-polluted metropolitan area this year for the fourth year in a row. Dallas-Fort Worth was 12 th on that same list this year, a worse position than its number 16 ranking last year. In good news for Texas, both Brownsville-Harlingen-San Benito and Laredo made the list of the 20 metropolitan areas with the least ozone air pollution.
Baton Rouge was the nation’s 16 th most ozone-polluted city this year.
Region 7: Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, and Missouri
None of the states in this region had counties on the list of the 25 most ozone-polluted counties or cities, although seven counties in Missouri earned Fs. Lincoln, Nebraska made the list of the 20 metropolitan areas with the least ozone air pollution. In Iowa, four counties with ozone air monitors had no ozone air pollution in unhealthy ranges. Two counties in Kansas improved their grades from 2002.
Region 8: Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado
In Colorado, six counties jumped at least one grade in this year’s report over the 2002 assessment: in one case from a C to an A, and another from an F to a C. None of the states in this region had counties on the list of the 25 most ozone-polluted counties or cities. In both Colorado and North Dakota, five counties with
ozone air monitors had no ozone air pollution in unhealthy ranges.
Four cities in the region made the list of the 20 metropolitan areas with the least ozone air pollution. They
were Colorado Springs and Greeley, Colorado; Fargo-Moorhead, North Dakota/Minnesota, and Sioux Falls,
South Dakota.
Region 9: California, Nevada, Arizona, and Hawaii
For the fourth year in a row since the State of the Air reports began, California has the top four most ozonepolluted metropolitan areas in the United States: Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County; Fresno; Bakersfield and Visalia-Tulare-Porterville. Sacramento-Yolo and Merced came in at 6th and 7th, and San Diego at number 18th. Redding, California, dropped from the 21st most ozone-polluted city in the 2002 report to 97
in the 2003 assessment.
California also has the five most ozone-polluted counties once again: San Bernadino, Fresno, Kern,
Tulare and Riverside. Los Angeles, El Dorado, Merced and Kings Counties came in at 7-10, while Nevada,
Ventura, and Sacramento Counties ranked 13-15. Altogether, thirteen counties in Region 9, all of them
in California, were among the nation's most ozone polluted.
There was some good news in California: 10 counties with ozone air monitors had no ozone air pollution in
unhealthy ranges, including San Francisco. And as noted above, San Luis Obispo jumped from an F to an
A rating from last year’s report. Four metropolitan areas in California (Salinas, San Francisco, San Luis
Obispo-Atascadero-Paso Robles, and Santa Cruz-Watsonville) made the list of the 20 cities with the
least ozone air pollution. Flagstaff, Arizona/Utah, and Honolulu, Hawaii, also made the list. Two counties in
Arizona and three counties in Nevada had no monitored ozone air pollution in unhealthy ranges.
Phoenix-Mesa, Arizona, was the 15th most ozonepolluted metropolitan area this year.
Region 10: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Alaska
In Oregon, four counties jumped at least a grade – two from a C to an A, and two from a B to an A. In
Washington, three counties saw improvement in grade. Seven counties in Washington and the five counties in
Oregon and the six in Washington with ozone air monitors had no ozone air pollution in unhealthy ranges.
Alaska and Idaho also earned all As.
The region landed five on the list of the 20 metropolitan areas with the least ozone air pollution:
Bellingham and Spokane in Washington; Eugene-Springfield and Medford-Ashland in Oregon, and
Portland-Salem, Oregon/Washington. None of the states in this region had counties on the list of the 25
most ozone-polluted counties or cities.
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State and local governments have agencies dedicated to the fight against air pollution. This report is in no way intended to evaluate the work of these agencies. It is important to note that some states that have made great strides have had the greatest levels of intractable pollution to remove. Also, the short time frame of this series of reports limits any evaluation of the trends in each community. |
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