'Ozone Action Day' Declared For Much Of Texas

AUSTIN, TX — An Ozone Action Day will be in effect in much of Texas on Saturday — including the cities of Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio — environmental regulators announced on Friday.

According to Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) officials, Saturday, June 8, will be marked by light to moderate winds, warm to hot temperatures, sufficient afternoon sunshine — climactic ingredients that will yield ozone levels deemed "unhealthy for sensitive groups," according to an advisory.

Those unhealthy zones will be primarily on the south and southwest sides of the Austin metro area, the south portion of DFW and southeast side in Houston, according to TCEQ officials. Additional areas of concern will be parts of the Midland-Odessa area; the southwest side of the San Antonio area; the middle to upper end of the "Moderate" range in parts of the Amarillo, El Paso, and Lubbock areas; and the lower end of the "Moderate" range in parts of the Beaumont-Port Arthur and Waco-Killeen areas, with highest concentrations in the afternoon and early evening.

"Otherwise and elsewhere in the state, moderate winds, and/or lower incoming background levels should help keep air quality in the 'Good' range in most spots," TCEQ officials added.

A summer Ozone Action Day is implemented when weather conditions run the risk of causing health problems, according to regulators. Ozone is a form of oxygen formed through chemical reactions between natural and man-made emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) in the presence of sunlight. VOCs and NOx sources include automobiles, boats, chemical manufacturing plants, refineries and solvents used in dry cleaners and pain shop. Such conditions also emerge wherever natural gas, gasoline, diesel fuel, kerosene and oil are combusted.

According to the Environmental Defense Fund, the main concern related to high ozone concentration is potential damage to human health, vegetation, and widely used materials. High concentrations of ozone can cause shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, headaches, nausea, eye and throat irritation, and lung damage. People suffering from lung diseases such as bronchitis, pneumonia, emphysema, asthma, and colds are at greater susceptibility, and could potentially have even more trouble breathing amid polluted air. These effects can be worse in anyone who spends significant periods of time exercising or working outdoors, the EDF noted.

Ozone Season in Central Texas runs from April 1st to October 31st."Ozone pollution is mainly a daytime problem during summer months because warm temperatures are key to its formation," according to the EDF website. "When temperatures are high, sunshine is strong, and winds are low, ozone can accumulate to unhealthy levels."

Learn more about ozone at the Environmental Defense Fund website.