For Immediate Release

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Electronic Message Boards to Provide Ozone Action Alerts

DENVER – The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) is working in partnership with the Regional Air Quality Council (RAQC) to alert Front Range motorists of the potential for elevated ground-level ozone pollution and encourage voluntary changes in ozone-forming activities. CDOT will post Ozone Alert messages on electronic message boards along the Front Range to provide advance warning of days when weather conditions are expected to lead to increased ground-level ozone concentrations in the metropolitan-Denver and Front Range region.

Electronic messages boards will display Ozone Alert messages in the late afternoon prior to an expected high-ozone day to encourage motorists to car pool, take public transportation, refuel in the evening, or other actions as ozone-reducing measure on those days. The signs will read:

The alerts will be issued around 2:45 p.m. They go into effect at 4 p.m. and continue for the following 24-hour period. The signs will only display Ozone Alert messages if they are not being used for other critical traffic safety messages.
Other ozone-reduction activities Front Range citizens can do to reduce ground-level ozone include:

• Stop at the click – do not overfill gas tanks when refueling.
• Keep vehicles regularly maintained.
• Tighten gas caps after refueling.
• Mow in the evening after 5 p.m.
• Refuel in the evening after 5 p.m.
• Use new, earth-friendly lawn equipment.
• Avoid solvent-based products, which have pollution causing vapors – volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Use water-based paint, stain and sealants.

According to the RAQC, ground-level ozone pollution is formed when emissions from everyday items combine with other pollutants and “cook” in the heat and sunlight. Sources of such emissions include local industry, gasoline-powered vehicles and lawn equipment, and household paints, stains and solvents. Weather plays a key role in ozone formation. The highest ozone levels are usually recorded in summer months when temperatures approach the high 80s and 90s and when the wind is stagnant or light.

At ground level, ozone pollution is harmful to all of us, especially the young and elderly. Ozone can also trigger attacks and symptoms in individuals with pre-existing health conditions, such as asthma or other respiratory infections. High levels of ozone pollution often affect healthy people who work or exercise outdoors and can cause breathing difficulties, eye irritation and reduced resistance to lung infections and colds with exposure for prolonged periods.

For additional information on ground-level ozone, please visit www.OzoneAware.org or the RAQC’s Web site at www.raqc.org or call (303) 629-5450.

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