Monday, Aug. 6 Declared Code Orange Air Quality Action Day In All 5 Air Quality Areas

The Department of Environmental Protection and its regional air quality partnerships have forecast a Code Orange Air Quality Action Day for ozone in all 5 air quality areas of the state, including--

-- Liberty-Clairton: Liberty, Clairton, Port Vue, Lincoln, Glassport, Allegheny County;

-- Southwest PA: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington, Westmoreland counties;

-- Southcentral PA:  Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, and York counties;

-- Lehigh Valley: Berks, Lehigh Northampton counties;
-- Southeast: Bucks Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties.

Stagnant conditions early in the day with a light southwesterly wind in the afternoon under mostly sunny skies will lead ozone concentrations to climb into the Code Orange range.

Increasing chances for showers and thunderstorms Tuesday afternoon are expected to limit ozone concentrations to the moderate range. Therefore, the Code Orange Air Quality Action Day is currently only expected for Monday.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s standardized air quality index uses colors to report daily air quality. Green signifies good; yellow means moderate; orange represents unhealthy pollution levels for sensitive people; and red warns of unhealthy pollution levels for all.

To help keep the air healthy, residents and business are encouraged to voluntarily restrict certain pollution-producing activities by:

-- Refueling cars and trucks after dusk;

-- Setting air conditioner thermostats to a higher temperature;

-- Carpooling or using public transportation; and

-- Combining errands to reduce trips.

These forecasts are provided in conjunction with DEP’s regional air quality partnerships.

Visit DEP’s Air Quality Partnerships webpage for more information on air quality across Pennsylvania.