AACOG Air Quality-Ozone Season

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Alerts | Exceedences | Links

Air Quality Health Alerts
The Air Quality Health Alert notification program is moving with the times. When AACOG receives a forecast of high pollution levels, it issues an Air Quality Health Alert to all local media entities and over 300 local organizations via fax, email, PDAs, etc. Air Quality Health Alerts are now frequently announced with the weather during the morning and evening television network news, on most local radio stations, and in the San Antonio Express-News and the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung. You can also find the Air Quality Index on the weather page of the Express-News.

2006 Air Quality Health Alert Days
Date	Warning Level	High 8-hour reading, Regulatory Site	High 8-hour reading, Non-regulatory Site
05/17/06	Orange	78 Calaveras Lake C56	76 New Braunfels Airport C504
05/18/06	Orange	79 San Antonio Northwest C23	71 New Braunfels Airport C504
06/03/06	Orange	80 Camp Bullis C58	76 City of Garden Ridge C505
06/04/06	Orange	73 Camp Bullis C58	72 Fair Oaks Ranch C502
06/04/06	Orange	73 Camp Bullis C58	72 Bulverde Elementary C503
06/08/06	Orange	84 Camp Bullis C58	79 Fair Oaks Ranch C502
06/09/06	Orange	77 Camp Bullis C58	77 Fair Oaks Ranch C502
06/13/06	Orange	93 Camp Bullis C58	82 City of Garden Ridge C505
06/14/06	Orange	90 Camp Bullis C58	83 Bulverde Elementary C503
			83 City of Garden Ridge C505
			83 Seguin Outdoor Learning Center C506
06/27/06	Orange	82 CPS Pecan Valley C578	88 Elm Creek Elementary C501
06/28/06	Orange	87 Camp Bullis C58	90 Elm Creek Elementary C501
06/29/06	Orange	91 Camp Bullis C58	88 Bulverde Elementary C503
06/30/06	Orange	71 Camp Bullis C58	70 Bulverde Elementary C503
08/19/06	Orange	54 Camp Bullis C58	52 Bulverde Elementary C503
08/31/06	Orange	74 Camp Bullis C58	72 Fair Oaks Ranch C502
09/01/06	Orange	77 Camp Bullis C58	77 Bulverde Elementary C503
09/07/06	Orange	82 Calaveras Lake C59	80 New Braunfels Airport C504
09/08/06	Orange	66 Camp Bullis C58	68 New Braunfels Airport C504
09/14/06	Orange	69 Camp Bullis C58	71 Fair Oaks Ranch C502
09/14/06	Orange	69 Camp Bullis C58	71 Bulverde Elementary C503

Air Quality Exceedences
Ozone levels are considered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be "unhealthful" and exceed the National Ambient Air Quality Standard when they are measured at 85 ppb or higher. The standard is based on averaging air quality measurements over 8-hour blocks of time. EPA uses the average of the annual 4th highest 8-hour daily maximum concentrations from three years of air quality monitoring data to determine a violation of the ozone standard.

High concentrations of ozone can cause shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, headaches, nausea, eye and throat irritation, and lung damage. People who suffer from lung diseases like bronchitis, pneumonia, emphysema, asthma, and colds have even more trouble breathing when the air is polluted. These effects can be worse in anyone who spends significant periods of time exercising or working outdoors.
(Source: Texas Commission on Environmental Quality)

2006 Four Highest Eight-Hour Ozone Concentrations, as of 10/20/06
Monitoring Site	Highest			Second Highest			Third Highest			Fourth Highest
Monitoring Site	Date	Time	Value	Date	Time	Value	Date	Time	Value	Date	Time	Value
San Antonio Northwest C23	06/13/2006	1100	92	06/14/2006	1100	89	06/29/2006	1100	83	06/28/2006	1100	81
Camp Bullis C58	06/13/2006	1100	93	06/29/2006	1100	91	06/14/2006	1100	90	06/28/2006	1100	87
CPS Pecan Valley C678	06/28/2006	1000	83	06/27/2006	1100	82	06/29/2006	1100	81	06/14/2006	1300	80
Calaveras Lake C59	06/28/2006	1100	86	06/29/2006	1100	81	09/07/2006	1200	82	06/27/2006	1200	81
Elm Creek Elementary C501*	06/28/2006	1100	90	06/27/2006	1100	88	06/29/2006	1100	80	09/07/2006	1100	71
Fair Oaks Ranch C502*	06/29/2006	1100	87	06/14/2006	1200	81	06/08/2006	1100	79	09/26/2006	1100	77
Heritage Middle School C622	06/28/2006	1100	81	06/29/2006	1100	79	06/27/2006	1200	79	06/14/2006	1200	79
Bulverde Elementary C503*	06/29/2006	1200	88	06/14/2006	1200	83	09/02/2006	1100	82	09/26/2006	1200	79
City of Garden Ridge C505*	06/14/2006	1200	83	06/29/2006	1100	82	06/28/2006	1100	82	06/13/2006	1100	82
New Braunfels Airport C504*	06/29/2006	1100	83	09/07/2006	1100	80	06/28/2006	1100	79	06/14/2006	1100	78
Seguin Outdoor Learning Center C506*	06/29/2006	1100	84	06/28/2006	1100	83	06/14/2006	1200	83	06/13/2006	1100	80

Source: Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
* - Non-regulatory Site

Air Quality Links

(PDF)

Air Quality Index (AQI)

For more information about AACOG's Air Quality Program contact:

Peter Bella, AACOG Natural Resources Director
8700 Tesoro Drive, Suite 700
San Antonio, TX 78217
Phone: (210) 362-5249
Fax: (210) 225-5937
E-Mail: pbella@aacog.com

AACOG's Mission:
To enhance the lives of all residents of the Alamo Region by working in mutual respect and partnership with all levels of government, the business sector, and the community at large to meet regional challenges and to create regional strengths.

Last updated on November 06, 2008