Denver Weather: Hot and unhealthy again Tuesday, overall this summer has been better than last
Tuesday is the 29th Ozone Action Day this season in the metro area which is far behind last year.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the Regional Air Quality Council declare an Ozone Action Day when sunny and hot weather is expected to allow ozone concentrations to reach levels that are unhealthy for at least sensitive groups such as young children, older adults, and anyone with asthma or another respiratory problem. These groups in particular should avoid rigorous outdoor activity during the heat of the day and everyone is encouraged to exercise indoors during the afternoon.
The forecast for Tuesday calls for nothing but sunshine and high temperatures well into the 90s around Denver, Boulder, and Fort Collins.
On hot days such as Tuesday, the heat "cooks" pollution from different sources including industrial, vehicles, and even household pollutants. This creates a thick layer ground-level ozone in the lower atmosphere which traps those pollutants near the ground causing hazy and unhealthy air. The ozone itself is invisible, but the trapped pollutions can often be seen as hazy skies.
There are many different simple steps Front Range residents can take to help with the problem such as combining car trips, using public transportation, working remotely, filling up your car after 5 p.m. and always stopping at "the click". Switching to electric lawn equipment and mowing after 5:00 p.m. also helps.
2022 is currently 19 days behind 2021 when it comes to the number of Ozone Action Days that have been declared to so far. There had been 48 such days by August 9 last year and 65 days total in 2021 which was a record.
With sunny and hot weather is expected through the end of the week, additional Ozone Actions Days are expected this week and there will likely be at least a handful more later this month. But with only 23 days left before the ozone season ends on August 31, this year will never catch up to last year.