Summer Pollution Facts

About Ozone in General

• Chart showing sources of summer pollution for the Wasatch Front
• Chart illustrating how ozone builds with the heat and decreases as the day cools off.
• Facts about ozone.

About Driving

The number of No Drive Days called in recent years:

• 2007: ? days
• 2006: 16 days
• 2005: 12 days
• 2004: 0
• 2003: 17 days
• 2002: 15 days
• 2001: 12 days
• 2000: 9 days
• 1999: 0
• 1998: 14 days

Keep in mind that weather plays an important factor in the formation of ozone.
(Source: DAQ Air Monitoring)

By simply parking your vehicle for one day, the average driver would keep just over ¼ pound of pollution out of the air. While that may not seem like much, if every driver along the Wasatch Front would park his/her vehicle for one day per week, emissions would decrease by 125 tons that week or 6,500 tons for the year.
(Source: DAQ Mobile Source)

When a car is at idle, emissions of carbon monoxide are at their highest. As speed increases, it drops dramatically, but increases again with speeds over 50 mph.
(Source: EPA)

Using a gas-powered lawn mower for one hour produces as much pollution as driving your car 50 miles. Using a chain saw for one hour produces as much pollution as driving your car 200 miles. Using an outboard motor produces as much pollution as driving your car 800 miles. (Source: Popular Science, July 1992)

About Health

• Estimates are that one in three Utahns experience some type of respiratory problem during high pollution periods. (Source DAQ Toxicologist)
• Prolonged exposure to low levels of ozone can reduce a healthy adult's lung function by 15 to 20 percent. (Source: EPA)
• Emergency room visits and hospital admissions for asthma increase about 24 hours after ozone levels are high. (Source: EPA)
• More than 47,000 children in Utah have asthma. (Source: American Lung Association of Utah)
• Click here for information on Utah's Asthma Program

If you have questions about your own health, contact your doctor or health care provider.