What’s the state of the air in your city?

The Americans are concerned about the oil in the Gulf of Mexico. The Europeans are worrying about the volcanic clouds coming from Iceland. But what about what is going on in your immediate environment? What is the air like in your part of the world? The American Lung Association (ALA) recently released their 2009 State of the Air report. And one of the key findings is: 28.9 million Americans live in counties where the outdoor air failed all three tests covered in the State of the Air report.

Are you one of them? Have you checked out what’s blowing in the wind in your city?

The report ranks US cities according to two of the most widespread air pollution: ozone and particulate matter levels.

And the top 10 most polluted cities according to ozone levels are:

• Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, CA
• Bakersfield, CA
• Visalia-Porterville, CA
• Fresno-Madera, CA
• Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Yuba City, CA-NV
• Hanford-Corcoran, CA
• Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX
• San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA
• Charlotte-Gastonia-Salisbury, NC-SC

The top 10 most polluted cities in terms of short-term particle pollution are:

• Bakersfield, CA
• Fresno-Madera, CA
• Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA
• Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, CA
• Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman, AL
• Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Yuba City, CA-NV
• Salt Lake City-Ogden-Clearfield, UT
• Visalia-Porterville, CA
• Modesto, CA
• Hanford-Corcoran, CA
• Merced, CA
• The top 10 most polluted cities in terms of year-round particle levels are:
• Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ
• Bakersfield, CA
• Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, CA
• Visalia-Porterville, CA
• Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA
• Fresno-Madera, CA
• Birmingham-Hoover-Cullman, AL
• Hanford-Corcoran, CA
• St. Louis-St. Charles-Farmington, MO-IL

 So what is wrong with California?

But of course, it’s not all bad news. The report also gives a list of the cleanest cities based on the same criteria as above.

And the cleanest 12 cities according to ozone levels are:

• Bismarck, ND
• Brownsville-Harlingen-Raymondville, TX
• Coeur d’Alene, ID
• Duluth, MN-WI
• Fargo-Wahpeton, ND-MN
• Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO
• Honolulu, HI
• Laredo, TX
• Lincoln, NE
• Port St. Lucie-Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL
• Rochester, MN
• Sioux Falls, SD

And the cleanest 10 for all year particle pollution are:

• Cheyenne, WY
• Santa Fe-Espanola, NM
• Honolulu, HI
• Anchorage, AK
• Great Falls, MT
• Tucson, AZ
• Amarillo, TX
• Albuquerque, NM
• Flagstaff, AZ
• Bismarck, ND

And the cleanest 10 for short-term particle pollution are:

• Alexandria, LA
• Amarillo, TX
• Athens-Clarke County, GA
• Austin-Round Rock, TX
• Bangor, ME
• Billings, MT
• Bloomington-Normal, IL
• Brownsville-Harlingen-Raymondville, TX
• Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL
• Champaign-Urbana, IL

So what does the dirty mean for many golden state residents and others who live in polluted areas?

Air pollution has been linked to respiratory problems, asthma, allergy and cardiovascular disorders (see our feature in Battling Asthma). Infants and children are especially susceptible.

Check out the ALA site for the following audio resources:

• What is air pollution?
• The health effects of pollution
• How to protect yourself from air pollution

Photo credit: stock.xchng