The heat is doing more than making life uncomfortable throughout the Front Range – it’s cooking up plenty of ground-level ozone.
High levels of ozone have been recorded in the Denver area and Fort Collins since Thursday, often surpassing the federal health-based standard of 80 parts per billion.
On Friday, monitors in Fort Collins recorded 97 parts per billion, while another placed at the former Rocky Flats site registered 90 parts per billion on Saturday.
Research on the effects of prolonged exposures to relatively low levels of ozone have found reductions in lung function, inflammation of the lung lining and respiratory discomfort, according to the American Lung Association.
Excessive levels of ozone also can prompt federal environmental regulators to give a region a dirty-air designation, which can dissuade industries from locating there and make new highway projects more difficult to plan.
While the excessive amounts of pollution hasn’t caused the region to violate Clean Air Act rules, this summer’s readings make it much more difficult to stay in compliance, local air pollution watchers say.
Compliance with the federal standard is based on a three-year rolling average of the fourth-highest ozone reading at any monitor.
“The higher the numbers are this year, there’s much less cushion available for next summer,” said Ken Lloyd, director of the Regional Air Quality Council.
Colorado environmental regulators said the Denver area’s overall air quality has improved in recent years, prompting the state health department to consider ending the mandatory vehicle emission inspection program.
Still, unexpected increases in ozone-forming emissions from the expanding oil and gas industry have regulators worried.
On Tuesday, the Regional Air Quality Council and state health department posted the 34th ozone alert of the summer, on track to pass the previous record of 42 warnings in 2003.
More hot temperatures with little rain are forecast for this week, making the formation of ozone, a prime ingredient in urban smog, seem likely.
Some of the highest ozone levels have been recorded by a new air monitor in west Fort Collins, although state environmental regulators aren’t sure what’s causing the increase.
Staff writer Kim McGuire can be reached at 303-820-1240 or kmcguire@denverpost.com.
