WHAT YOU CAN DO TO IMPACT OZONE AIR POLLUTION
Protecting Yourself
Reducing Smog
Supporting the Clean Air Act
Take Action: Support the Lung Association's fight for clean air!
Health tips for protecting yourself on high ozone days:
- Don’t exercise midday or in the afternoon, and avoid strenuous outdoor activity when ozone smog or other pollution levels are high. The highest levels of ozone typically occur during the afternoon.
- Avoid congested streets and rush hour traffic since motor vehicles are a primary source of air pollution.
- Make sure teachers, coaches and recreation officials know about air pollution and ozone alert days and offer alternative indoor activities for children with asthma.
- Be aware of the quality of the air you breathe. Pollution forecasts are often given with local weather reports and printed in newspapers and are available online at www.epa.gov/airnow/.
- Watch the calendar. Ozone smog tends to be worst during the May-to-October “smog season.” Be especially conscious of smog levels during hot weather.
Personal tips for reducing smog:
- Combine car trips and increase carpooling.
- Fill up gas tanks after dusk.
- Keep cars maintained. A car maintained according to manufacturer’s instructions runs cleaner and more efficiently.
- Use mass transit whenever possible; try telecommuting and carpooling to work. Walk, roller blade or bike while doing errands to keep the air and yourself fit and healthy.
- Use human-powered or electric rather than gasoline-powered lawn equipment.
- Conserve electricity to reduce power plant emissions.
- When purchasing a new car, consider electric or hybrid gasoline/electric vehicles to help reduce emissions.
- Contact your local American Lung Association for more information about ozone air pollution, lung health and local air quality control at 1-800-LUNG-USA, or visit www.lungusa.org.
- Shop for reduced-emissions versions of household staples such as paints, cleaning supplies and personal care products.
- Use human-powered or electric rather than gasoline-powered lawn care equipment. Two-stroke engines like lawnmowers and blowers often have no pollution control devices and can be much more polluting than cars.
Tips for supporting the Clean Air Act:
- The American Lung Association urges Americans to contact members of Congress to oppose any bills that would weaken the Clean Air Act and to contact EPA by May 3, 2003 to oppose the proposed changes that would weaken the New Source Review provisions. Log on to www.lungusa.org to make your voice heard to Congress and EPA on these critical issues. Take Action Today! Click here to join our fight for clean air!
For more information, call the American Lung Association at 1-800-LUNG-USA (1-800-586-8722), or visit our web site at http://www.lungusa.org. |
