Connecticut is continuing to live up to its nickname as the "tailpipe of America."
Ozone pollution, also known as smog, has worsened in six of Connecticut’s eight counties, according to a new report from the American Lung Association. Much of Connecticut’s air pollution comes from factories in the Midwest and motor vehicle emissions in New York City, although local traffic on Interstate 95 is also to blame.
Ozone pollution is particularly bad in Fairfield County, which the report ranked as the most polluted metro area east of Texas and the 16th most polluted place in America.
The worsening pollution is expected to cause new cases of asthma in children, an uptick in emergency room visits for those who already have asthma or COPD and an increased risk of heart attack, stroke and death, according to the report. Connecticut is already home to more than half a million people living with lung diseases, including childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD and lung cancer.
“It's a sad world where we have to tell our kids to stay inside,” said Dr. David Hill, a pulmonologist who works in Waterbury and serves on the American Lung Association’s board of directors.
“We're trying to tell our kids to get away from the screen and go outside and be in nature and play, and there are days where it's not safe for our kids to be outside because they're going to get sick. And during the worst days, it's not safe for anyone to be outside,” Hill said.
How climate change is making air pollution worse
Ozone pollution is formed when sunlight reacts with emissions from motor vehicles, power plants and refineries. While emissions have been on the decline for decades thanks to the federal Clean Air Act, the other key ingredient — hotter temperatures — are increasing due to climate change.
“On hot, hot sunny days, the pollutants are cooked up and they create ozone,” said Ruth Canovi, advocacy director for the American Lung Association in Connecticut.
“Climate change is impacting our ability to clean up the air that we breathe, especially around ozone,” she said.
Emissions could also increase if the Trump administration remains successful in rolling back climate policies, like the endangerment finding, which underpin the Clean Air Act. The Environmental Protection Agency rescinded the finding in February but a coalition of states, including Connecticut, have since filed lawsuits challenging the decision.
How to stay safe and what local communities can do
If it’s a hot, sunny day and you’re not sure whether it’s safe to be outside, experts recommend looking at your local air quality report at AirNow.gov. The report uses a color-coded scale to show when it’s safe for sensitive groups to be outside.
“When air quality is really bad, you want to plan your outdoor activities around it,” Hill said.
“The time to exercise is not at the hottest, worst air quality time of day. It's early in the morning or late in the day. Or there may be days where you're better off going to the gym or taking an off day, as opposed to going for a run. Same thing when wildfires occur,” he said.
While much of Connecticut’s air pollution comes from out of state, local efforts to limit emissions can have an impact too, according to Canovi.
“If we get more and more polluting cars off the road that can really help improve the quality of the air that we breathe,” she said.
“Especially as we're seeing a change of climate make this more difficult, it really is important to do whatever we can to reduce air pollution, but also improve public health,” she said.
Áine Pennello is a Report for America corps member, covering the environment and climate change for Connecticut Public
