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YouTubeIs Columbus’ air that dirty?Thursday, August 03, 2006
Spencer Hunt
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
There are days when many central Ohio residents simply don’t leave their houses out of fear that the air isn’t safe to breathe. Since late May, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission has issued bad-air warnings on 25 days.
But state officials say the warnings are not accurate. Bill Spires, a manager in the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency’s air division, points to a recent report that suggested Columbus had 11 bad-air days for soot in July compared with four in Pittsburgh and none in Chicago.
"I don’t think anyone believes Columbus’ air is dirtier than Chicago’s or Pittsburgh’s," Spires said. "It doesn’t make sense."
Columbus Underground Messageboard » General Columbus Discussion
Is Columbus’ air that dirty?
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Walker
The KLD / Downtown
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Posted 5 years ago # -
mellotron
Arena District
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There are days when many central Ohio residents simply don’t leave their houses out of fear that the air isn’t safe to breathe.
Seriously? Is this actually true?
"We definitely know what we’re doing," Dye said (rep of the MORPC who operate the air monitors)
Wow. Taken out of context, perhaps. But anyone that adamant about "knowing what they're doing" probably doesn't.
Posted 5 years ago # -
enzo
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I am so congested because the heat inside our office is so dry and aggravating to my nasal passages. Just had to share. Super hot and stuffy...feel like I am suffocating. I wish we were allowed to order the vicks tissues at work, but we have to have the harsh generic kind with woodchips visible in the tissue. This is going to be a very long week.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Manatee
The eternal present
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I can say that I've lived in Cleveland, Portland, Savannah, Long Island, New York City and here, and visited many other places besides, and Columbus has some of the worst air I've breathed. NYC was worse (obviously?), but there's something about the flat, humid, oppressively windless air in the summer here that just does me in. The pollution just seems to "hang out" for days on end.
But yeah, NYC is so bad that after walking outside for a few hours, I feel like it's already time to wash my hair.
Eh, at least we're not in those parts of Asia where they have that "yellow fog" stuff blow thorugh once a year and everyone has to wear masks. Rejoice!
Posted 3 years ago # -
lifeontwowheels
Highland West
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I hope it's not bad.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Rockmastermike
CORNspiracy HQ
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The valley our downtown area is in traps soot really well (much better than, say, Chicago - the WINDY city) on still days. We also have trouble with tropospheric ozone created by reaction of certain volitiles created when diesel fumes get trapped in the valley.
When they get the malfunctioning air monitor fixed, the situation can be assessed better, but the air in the downtown area really does get pretty bad some days. Just because it smells clean doesn't mean it's clean. I've had some real asthma problems on some of the bad days (when the readings were over 90-100).
Posted 3 years ago # -
misskitty
Columbus
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I don't think our air is that bad but like Manatee said their are a few days out of the year when it's real hard to breath just from walking out side. But I have a bit of the asthma also so I am sure that plays a part in it. I think the warnings they post on the news are for older people that may have breathing issues and people with asthma.
Posted 3 years ago # -
nexttuesday
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Does the fact that "no one believes" that our air is worse than other cities make any difference? Just because I don't have a problem breathing doesn't mean I'm not getting cancer from the air. Edit: I guess they are saying they think some measurement is faulty. Kind of premature to write this article when they don't know if it's wrong or not.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Rockmastermike
CORNspiracy HQ
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nexttuesday wrote >>
Does the fact that "no one believes" that our air is worse than other cities make any difference? Just because I don't have a problem breathing doesn't mean I'm not getting cancer from the air. Edit: I guess they are saying they think some measurement is faulty. Kind of premature to write this article when they don't know if it's wrong or not.Truth. We also don't notice differences in UV exposure from day to day, or the slightly increased dose of gamma radiation you get from visiting Denver. Doesn't mean they don't exist.
The air issues are, as Manatee mentioned, really only bad on hot humid days. Some of those days particulate concentration goes WAY over the level cited as the malfunction in that monitor.
Really, though, I'm not at all certain what the point of that article was, unless it was some kind of jab at MORPC for having a malfunctioning monitor.
Eh... Whatever.
Posted 3 years ago # -
brothermarcus
West Siiiide
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The only times I've really had problems were really hot days where I rode my bike across the Olentangy River from Grandview to head downtown... for whatever reason something around the river would get into my lungs while I was pedaling and stay with me for hours. I've never really had nearly as bad allergies in Columbus as I did growing up in a mainly agricultural area of Western Union County.
Posted 3 years ago # -
gramarye
In Exile
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I'm not all that widely traveled, and of course nexttuesday's caveat is valid, but comparing Columbus' air to Philadelphia, Kirkersville (OH) Canton, and Charlottesville (VA), I actually think Columbus' air stacks up fairly well. Charlottesville's air was good but it's a small, pastoral community with almost no heavy industry nor heavy agriculture. I certainly wouldn't be warning people away from moving to Columbus due to air quality issues.
Posted 3 years ago # -
joev
Merion Village
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Other than the poo smell outside of the Mowhawk, I think the air is pretty OK. High Street does smell of car/bus exhaust, which is never good. I can't imagine Columbus is in a valley deep enough to hinder pollution drifiting off, but I think lakeside/seaside cities do tend to have cleaner, more crisp air. Athens is definitely in a valley that traps heat, humidity and filth, Columbus is paradise compared (in August, especially.)
Posted 3 years ago # -
Brewmaster
Portland, OR
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"I don’t think anyone believes Columbus’ air is dirtier than Chicago’s or Pittsburgh’s," Spires said. "It doesn’t make sense."
Shouldn't the Director of the Ohio EPA's air division have some data to back up his statement?
A lot of things don't make sense to me (differential equations, George W. Bush getting elected twice, quantum physics, Two and a Half Men's TV ratings), but that doesn't mean they're invalid.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Rockmastermike
CORNspiracy HQ
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joev wrote >>
Other than the poo smell outside of the Mowhawk, I think the air is pretty OK. High Street does smell of car/bus exhaust, which is never good. I can't imagine Columbus is in a valley deep enough to hinder pollution drifiting off, but I think lakeside/seaside cities do tend to have cleaner, more crisp air. Athens is definitely in a valley that traps heat, humidity and filth, Columbus is paradise compared (in August, especially.)It doesn't take much of a valley, but you can't really tell how deep the valley here is without looking at a map. It's 100 feet in places, but it's gradual and hard to tell, like a big shallow soup bowl. It simply serves to prevent diffusion on days there isn't any wind, and disrupts very light winds.
Athens, definitely bad. Dayton too.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Manatee
The eternal present
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I was living in Portland, was two months pregnant and working a one hour bus ride across the city, my saviours were these two elderly Catholic gentlemen at work who became like my surrogate dads.
One day they asked, "Where did you move here from, kid?"
When I said Columbus, right away both of them scowled and said, "Bad weather there! Too hot, and too cold! And the air is bad!"
I thought this was funny because people here think Portland has the bad weather, i.e. rainy all the time. I guess all that rain clears out the air somewhat, and the temperature there did seem much more moderate. Then again, this = more homeless people living outside all year round.
Posted 3 years ago #
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