Clark County one of many to fail ozone test

Tuesday, May 23, 2000 | 11:28 a.m.

Clark County was one of 333 counties throughout the country that received a failing grade for air quality because of ozone pollution -- better known as smog -- according to a report from the American Lung Association released today.

Ozone is a potentially life-threatening, odorless gas produced by burning fuels, especially tailpipe emissions from vehicles. Even small amounts can cause distress, especially among older people, children and people with respiratory problems.

John Holck, the lung association's executive director of Nevada, said the air pollution contributes to chronic or acute lung disease for an estimated 830,000 people in Clark County -- more than half the county's 1.3 million residents.

Ozone pollution contributes to chronic lung disease including emphysema, bronchitis, adult and children's asthma, he said. Additionally, it is a factor of acute diseases such as influenza, Holck said.

The lung association does annual health screenings in the county and has found that the incidence of asthma among children is 10 percent here compared to 7 percent nationally, he said.

"Essentially, we know that pollution can make people cough and wheeze," he said. "For people that are really sick, it can lead to worsened illnesses and even shortened life."

Southern Nevada is under a federal mandate to clean up air pollution in two categories, carbon monoxide and fine dust, but a 1997 court challenge derailed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency enforcement of new rules for ozone.

That case was accepted by the U.S. Supreme Court for review this week. Holck said the association has filed friend-of-the-court briefs supporting the EPA's tougher standards.

Local air-quality planners have said that the region could have a tough time complying with the ozone standards.

Clark County has a lot of company in the unhealthy category. The study says the health of nearly 50 percent of Americans is potentially at risk because ozone pollution levels are at dangerous levels in major metropolitan areas around the country.

Clark County was the only county in the state to receive a failing grade for ozone. Elsewhere in the state, the Reno area was one of only 18 metropolitan areas in the country that did not record any unhealthy days for ozone pollution over the last three years.

Douglas, Washoe and White Pine, the other counties in the state with active ozone monitoring, all passed with top grades.

Ozone is a highly reactive form of oxygen that results primarily from the action of sunlight on the hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides emitted from fuel combustion. Levels of ozone typically rise between May and October, when higher temperatures, increased sunlight and stagnant air combine.

While California, and Los Angeles in particular, historically have the highest ozone concentrations, readings have been increasing in Texas and other Sunbelt states.