Air Quality Alert Issued For Friday

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has forecast a Code ORANGE Air Quality Action Day for ozone for Friday, June 21st in the Pittsburgh area, which includes Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington, and Westmoreland counties. In addition, an Air Quality Action Day has also been declared for the Indiana county area with respect to ozone.  Mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the middle 90s will create conditions for robust ozone development and formation into the code ORANGE range during the afternoon hours. Any afternoon or evening thunderstorm activity is expected to be isolated in nature, and only affect a small fraction of the area.  On air quality action days, young children, the elderly, and those with respiratory problems, such as asthma, emphysema, and bronchitis, are especially vulnerable to the effects of air pollution and should limit outdoor activities.  Residents and businesses within the Air Quality Action Day area(s) are strongly encouraged to voluntarily help reduce air pollution by:  Conserving electricity by setting air conditioning to a higher temperature; combining errands to reduce vehicle trips; limiting engine idling; and refueling cars and trucks after dusk.