LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County is once again ranked among the best areas in the nation for its air quality.
The American Lung Association has released its annual State of the Air 2018 Report, which grades state and local area air quality on an A through F scale by comparing local ozone and small-particulate concentrations with the federal air quality standards.
Although many areas, especially within California, were given failing grades, Lake County passed with top marks.
Lake County received an “A” grade for Ozone, a “B” grade for short term particulate pollution and is ranked the fourth-cleanest county in the nation for annual particulate average concentrations.
“The fourth-cleanest county in the nation for particulate matter is a significant indicator of the hard work and dedication this community has to maintaining a healthful environment. Even with the drought and wildfires of recent years, we can still enjoy clean air,” said Douglas Gearhart, air pollution control officer of the Lake County Air Quality Management District.
Lake County did not change significantly from its previous annual averages even though the period of time covered by this report includes the Valley fire, Rocky fire, Jerusalem fire and Clayton fire.
Out of California’s 58 counties, Lake County is one of only 11 counties in California that did not have any days of ozone exceeds from 2014 through 2016. Local officials said this impressive record has been documented by continuous air quality monitoring.
The report presents data showing what the residents of Lake County actually are breathing on a daily basis. It does not exclude wildfire impacts or other natural events that are excluded when determining our attainment status.
The “B” grade for short term particulate pollution is the result of impacts from the 2015 wildfires. This shows that despite the Valley, Rocky, Jerusalem, Clayton and other fires, the residents of Lake County still enjoy some of the cleanest air in the nation.
The American Lung Association grades are the latest recognition of a long history of air quality accomplishments in Lake County.
Strong local support for clean air measures has enabled the county to comply in full with not only the Federal Clean Air Standards, but also with the more rigorous California Standards for ozone and other air pollutants for the past 28 consecutive years. No other air district in California can match that record.
Gearhart attributes the success of the program to strong community support for maintaining clean, healthful air, cooperation of local government, including the county of Lake, cities of Lakeport and Clearlake, the local fire protection districts, Cal Fire, the agricultural community, industry, the district board of directors and to the dedication and hard work of Air Quality Management District staff.
The State of the Air Report can be found at www.lung.org/sotc.
Lake County ranked No. 4 nationwide for cleanest air
- Lake County News reports
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