Local news/weather media typically announce Ozone Action Days when weather conditions are conducive to the creation of high ozone levels near the ground. This is a public health concern, and on OAD’s, people are asked to take certain steps to help mitigate the problem, such as:
Question: Do you do anything differently when an OAD has been declared in your area? Or do you just go about your business like any other day?
Yes, I pay only $.75 bus fare.
If it’s convenient, I follow the guidelines. However, OADs are always on very hot days, so mowing after 6:00 is nuts. We have one today, here in central Indiana, and my lawn doesn’t need mowing.
I am asthmatic, 62, and retired, so I am in two of the risky groups of an OAD. Being retired means I can stay home if I don’t have plans that day. Being asthmatic means I might actually have trouble breathing if I walk my dogs. If that happens, I’ll use my albuterol. I use Advair every day, so any asthma attacks I have are not very serious.
I don’t drive, so on OADs I usually forgo walking the dogs in favor of indoor exercise (for me - the dog is out of luck!)
I do everything on the list as much as possible every day. The only exception is refueling when I decide.
Well my commute is 40 miles and not served by public transportation, so I’ve got no choice but to drive if it’s a day I have to go in to the office. Any other driving is already cut down to a bare minimum. I only fill up the car once a week, usually around 5 or 6 AM on Saturday.
The landlord mows the lawn, so I’ve got no control over that.
I only grill a few times a year.
No hairspray or other aerosols are used in my household.
So no, I don’t do anything special, but my lifestyle is already as low as possible on things that are bad for the ozone layer.
Bri2k
I didn’t even know there was such a thing.
Wow, following the links brought me to http://airnow.gov/ which has a cool clickable forecast map. You can drill down to your city and read the data.
Huh. I learned sumpin’ today!
Nope, any other day. Today was an OAD and according to wiki I was a pretty good girl except I drove myself to work because I have no other choice.
Ozone action days are typically days when I get a migraine if I have to go out in the smog and ick, so I lay low as much as possible for my own sake. Driving is limited for that reason as much as anything else.
I don’t get fuel unless it’s absolutely 100% necessary. I’ve learned to avoid necessity though. There’s no reason for me to ride my tank to empty, I’m not a broke kid any more.
Our lawn is mowed with a rotary push mower, but our landscape guy is asthmatic (and our cousin) so he doesn’t come out on an OAD either, if he can help it. We don’t use aerosols or many chemicals around the house anyway, so that’s not an issue.
When I was living near San Francisco, I really did nothing different on Spare The Air Days. I was already either commuting via BART or telecommuting.
Actually, I did do one thing slightly out of the ordinary - dread the throngs of people who normally did not take the train and were only there because the ride was free.
Here, public transit is not a viable option, but I normally telecommute three days per week.
No.
Never heard of it. I thought it was a holiday or something.
Never heard of an “Ozone Action Day.” According to Ninety’s link Phoenix is in the clear for now.
Indiana media are pretty good about announcing Ozone Action Days (called Knozone Action Days around here, a relatively cute play on words). If you listen to local radio or watch TV before work/school, you will probably hear the day’s Knozone announcement.
I don’t do extraordinary things to comply, but I do find that I keep it in mind when needing to refuel my car, or when mowing a lawn or something; I’ll delay refueling until nightfall, and will (happily) procrastinate on lawn care.
On the rare occasions they’re declared, all that’s said is that buses (since I watch Boston stations pretty often, these are usually on the news in MA, there aren’t many buses to speak of here) are free due to health risks. I’ve never heard them list any of the things you could do suggestions you mention.