Mercer County Gets 'F' For Air Quality In New Report

More than 40 percent of Americans live in areas with unhealthy air, according to a new report published Wednesday by the American Lung Association, and Mercer County residents are among them.

The American Lung Association, whose work involves improving lung health and preventing lung disease, looked at ozone and particle pollution, often called soot, in its 20th annual "State of the Air" report. Mercer County got an “F” grade for air quality in the report.

The report graded air quality using color codes. Maroon refers to hazardous air quality, while purple and red refer to very unhealthy and unhealthy, respectively. Orange means the air was unhealthy for people with sensitive health conditions.

The report looked at three years of data on the two most widespread outdoor air pollutants from 2015-17, which were the warmest years in recorded history. Over that time, Mercer County had 26 “Orange” days and 1 “Red” day, according to the report.

Particle pollution comes from many sources, including wildfires, wood-burning devices, coal plants and diesel engines. Particulate matter is dangerous because it becomes lodged deep in the lungs and can enter the bloodstream, triggering asthma attacks, heart attacks and strokes, and, in some cases, causing lung cancer.

For the study, researchers with the Lung Association measured particle pollution in both short- and long-term intervals. Short-term refers to daily spikes that can prove deadly, while long-term refers to yearly average.

Ozone pollution, often called smog, is unhealthy and essentially leaves a sunburn on the lungs, the report said. Breathing in ozone can leave people suffering from shortness of breath and cause bouts of coughing, asthma attacks and even early death.

Read more here: Here’s How Dirty Your NJ Community’s Air Really Is, Report Says