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Special Air Quality Statement
Wildfire Smoke Health Advisory continued for West Fork Wildfire.

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Front Range
No Ozone Action Day Alert in Effect

Current Air Quality install on your website...
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This is the Front Range Air Pollution Forecast effective 4PM on Tuesday, June 18, 2013:

No Advisories for Ozone or any other pollutant are in effect until at least 4 p.m. on Wednesday for the Front Range Urban Corridor from El Paso County north to Larimer and Weld counties, including the Denver-Boulder area, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins and Greeley.

Ozone levels should remain below alert levels on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Should atmospheric conditions suggest increased ground-level ozone concentrations, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the Regional Air Quality Council will issue an ozone advisory. In addition, if conditions warrant, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment will issue advisories for other pollutants. Check this website (http://colorado.gov/airquality/advisory.aspx) often for a report on current air quality conditions and to learn if an ozone action day alert is in effect.

For statewide conditions, forecasts and advisories, visit:
http://www.colorado.gov/airquality/colorado_summary.aspx

The highest Particulate Matter (PM2.5) related AQI at 1 o'clock AM Mountain Standard Time on June 19, 2013, is 38 which indicates Good Particulate Matter (PM2.5) air quality. It was recorded by the CAMP ambient monitor.


Front Range Air Quality Forecast & Colorado Smoke Outlook
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FRONT RANGE AIR QUALITY FORECAST:
Tuesday, June 18, 2013, 3:00 PM

Ozone concentration levels on Tuesday and Wednesday are expected to be in the Good to Moderate range. The Moderate concentrations of ozone are possible throughout the Front Range region both Tuesday and Wednesday during the afternoons and evenings, but are most likely along the foothills. Unusually sensitive people should consider reducing prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion between 2pm and 10pm on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Moderate to Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups Fine Particulate Matter concentration levels are possible in areas directly impacted by heavy wildfire smoke on Tuesday and Wednesday. In areas not affected by smoke from forest fires, fine particulate levels are expected to be in the Good category on Tuesday and Wednesday. For additional information on current Wildfire Smoke Health Advisories, see the Colorado Smoke Outlook below.

Carbon Monoxide concentration levels are expected to be in the Good category on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Nitrogen Dioxide concentration levels are expected to be in the Good category on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Visibility in Denver on Tuesday is expected to be Moderate.


COLORADO SMOKE OUTLOOK:
Tuesday, June 18, 2013, 3:00 PM

Public health recommendations for areas affected by smoke:
If smoke is thick or becomes thick in your neighborhood you may want to remain indoors. This is especially true for those with heart disease, respiratory illnesses, the very young, and the elderly. Consider limiting outdoor activity when moderate to heavy smoke is present. Consider relocating temporarily if smoke is present indoors and is making you ill. IF VISIBILITY IS LESS THAN 5 MILES IN SMOKE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, SMOKE HAS REACHED LEVELS THAT ARE UNHEALTHY.

For additional information about smoke, visit:
http://www.colorado.gov/airquality/wildfire.aspx


WILDFIRE SMOKE HEALTH ADVISORY
Issued for West Fork Fire in Mineral County 15 miles north of Pagosa Springs
Issued at 9:00 AM Tuesday 6/18/13
Continued at 3:00 PM Tuesday 6/18/13
Affected Area: From the West Fork Wildfire in Mineral County to the north and northeast including South Fork, Del Norte, Saguache, Howard, Cotopaxi, and also south of the fire to the San Juan and lower Piedra River Valleys including Pagosa Springs and Piedra.
Advisory in Effect: 9:00 AM Tuesday 6/18/13 to 9:00 AM Wednesday 6/19/13
Outlook: With a gusty southwesterly wind continuing Tuesday evening the threat for moderate to heavy smoke will persist for locations to the north and northeast of the fire. Locations potentially impacted Tuesday evening include, but are not limited to South Fork, Del Norte, Saguache, Howard, Cotopaxi and the Rio Grande National Forest. By late Tuesday evening the winds will lighten and drainage flow will likely produce moderate to heavy smoke again overnight for areas to the south of the fire in the San Juan and lower Piedra River Valleys, including Pagosa Springs and Piedra. Smoke could also linger overnight in some areas to the north and northeast of the fire, from South Fork eastward down the Rio Grande River into the northern San Luis Valley.

SMOKE FROM FIRES
Variable smoke conditions are expected near other wildfires, including the possibility of locally heavy smoke. Larger fires include:

The Black Forest Wildfire north of Colorado Springs. Gusty southeasterly winds are expected Tuesday evening impacting areas to the north and northwest of the fire. Overnight Tuesday night and into Wednesday the winds will generally be from a south to southwesterly direction, keeping the highest possibility of light to moderate smoke to the north of the fire.

The Big Meadows Wildfire in Rocky Mountain National Park about 5 miles northeast of Grand Lake. The wind Tuesday night near the fire should mostly be out of a southerly direction, keeping light to moderate smoke off to the north. South to southwest winds should redevelop on Wednesday and be quite gusty, so smoke may be visible in Estes Park and perhaps Loveland and Ft. Collins.

The Ward Gulch Wildfire about 10 miles north of Rifle (3 miles north of Rifle Gap). Gusty southwesterly winds should ease up Wednesday night decreasing smoke to the northeast of the fire, but overnight drainage winds could push smoke down-valley towards Rifle and Silt. Gusty southwesterly winds should redevelop on Wednesday shifting the focus of smoke back to locations off to the northeast of the fire.

The Lackey Fan and Dark Canyon Wildfire in southeastern Utah. Gusty southwesterly winds Tuesday evening could produce smoke impacts along the Colorado River Valley to include Grand Junction, Fruita and Palisade. Overnight Tuesday night the winds will decrease and smoke impacts should remain local in southeastern Utah. However as strong south to southwest winds redevelop on Wednesday, the Colorado River Valley will again be threatened by smoke impacts.

The Wild/Hacking Wildfire in Dinosaur National Monument 23 miles north of Dinosaur. Gusty southwesterly winds will decrease overnight Tuesday night keeping any smoke impacts in close vicinity to the fire. Gusty southwest winds will redevelop on Wednesday spreading smoke to the northeast of the fire.

Light to moderate smoke from fires in New Mexico will continue to contribute to background haze in central and eastern parts of Colorado.


For more information on air quality, visit:
http://www.colorado.gov/airquality/colorado_summary.aspx


Summer Ozone Program
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For an AQI value that considers all pollutants, please click here.

Ground-level ozone is a summertime air pollution problem that is created when other pollutants from sources like vehicle exhaust, paints, degreasing agents and cleaning fluids react with sunlight. Exposure to ground-level ozone can cause acute respiratory problems, reduced lung capacity and inflammation of lung tissues and can trigger asthma attacks.

Ground-level ozone should not be confused with the protective stratospheric ozone layer miles above the Earth's surface. This naturally-occurring ozone layer protects the Earth's surface from excessive ultra-violet radiation.

Do your share and be a part of the solution to the Denver-metropolitan area's summertime air pollution problems. These easy strategies will help reduce the harmful vapors that react in sunlight to create summertime air pollution:

At Home:

  • Tightly cap all solvents (paint thinners and strippers, degreasers, and some cleaning products). Solvents contain pollution-causing vapors.
  • Postpone painting, stripping and refinishing projects to avoid the morning and mid-day summertime heat. Better yet, wait until the Fall or Spring.
  • Use water-based products (paints, stains and sealants).

In the Yard:

  • Delay mowing your lawn to another day. Don't mow, let it grow!
  • Avoid using high-emitting, gasoline-powered yard equipment. Electric alternatives are an efficient, environmentally-friendly alternative.
  • Use an electric starter or a "charcoal chimney" to start your barbeque grill. Lighter fluid contains a lot of harmful vapors that escape into our air and contribute to summertime air pollution.

On the Go:

  • Stop at the click when refueling your car. Overfilling your tank often results in fuel spills and always allows unnecessary pollution-causing vapors to escape into our air.
  • Refuel in the evenings after dusk. By refueling after the sun goes down, fuel vapors do not have as much of a chance to "cook" in the mid-day sun and become harmful ground-level ozone.
  • Maintain your vehicle. A poorly-maintained vehicle can pollute as much as 25 times more than a well-maintained one.

To learn more about the summer ozone program, visit:
http://www.ozoneaware.org

Additional Information
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ACTION DAYS: An Action Day for fine particulate matter (particulates), carbon monoxide, ozone or other pollutants indicates that either current air quality is unhealthy or conditions are expected to worsen later in the day or on the next day. Action Days for air pollutants generally indicate that air quality will be in either the Unhealthy or Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups categories according to the Air Quality Index. Action Days trigger voluntary pollution prevention measures, which may vary by season, and public health recommendations. In addition, during the winter 'high pollution day' season (October 31 to March 31), Action Days trigger mandatory residential burning restrictions (see residential burning below).

Action Days for Visibility alone are issued during the winter 'high pollution day' season (October 31 to March 31), only. At the time they are issued (4 PM), action days for visibility indicate that the Visibility Standard Index for visual air quality is expected to be poor on the following day. Action Days for Visibility trigger mandatory residential burning restrictions and voluntary driving reductions for the seven-county Denver-Boulder metropolitan area only (see residential burning below).

The VISIBILITY STANDARD INDEX reports the air's visual quality in the seven-county Denver-Boulder metropolitan area. The visibility standard is 0.076 per kilometer of atmospheric extinction, which means that 7.6 percent of the light in a kilometer of air is blocked. The level must exceed the standard based on a four-hour average for a violation to occur. On the Visibility Standard Index Scale, a value of 101 equates to the 0.076/km standard. Values between 0-50 are good, 51-100 moderate, 101-200 poor and 201-plus extremely poor.

The AIR QUALITY INDEX reports the daily level of air pollution on an hourly basis. The index reports the highest level of either carbon monoxide, fine particulates or ozone depending on which pollutant has the greatest hourly concentration. Values greater than 100 for carbon monoxide, fine particulates and ozone indicate exceedances of the pollutant's state and federal standards. Air Quality Index values between 0-50 are good, 51-100 moderate, 101-150 unhealthy for sensitive groups, 151-200 unhealthy, 201-300 very unhealthy, and over 300 hazardous.

RESIDENTIAL BURNING: On Action Days issued during the winter 'high pollution day' season (October 31 through March 31), mandatory residential burning restrictions generally apply to everyone in the entire seven-county Denver-Boulder metropolitan area below 7,000 feet. The restrictions will be enforced through local ordinances or a state regulation.

The state regulation applies to any community in the seven-county Denver-Boulder metropolitan area that did not have its own mandatory residential burning ordinance in effect on January 1, 1990. Under this regulation, the only exceptions to the residential burning restrictions are for residences above 7,000 feet in the seven-county Denver-Boulder metropolitan area; and those who use Colorado Phase III (Phase II EPA) certified woodburning stoves, Colorado approved pellet stoves, approved masonry heaters or those whose stoves or fireplaces are their primary source of heat. For more information on residential burning restrictions, call the Air Pollution Control Division at (303) 692-3100.
For more, go to: http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/ap/woodhome.html

COLORADO OPEN BURN FORECAST: For those with permits for Open Burning, that is burning of waste materials or vegetation outside, check the following webpage to find out if open burning is allowed today:
http://www.colorado.gov/airquality/burn_forecast.aspx

FOR CURRENT AIR QUALITY INFORMATION AND UPDATES:
http://www.colorado.gov/airquality/advisory.aspx
http://www.colorado.gov/airquality/air_quality.aspx

ABOUT THE AIR QUALITY INDEX:
http://www.epa.gov/airnow/aqi_brochure_08-09.pdf

SOCIAL MEDIA AND AIR QUALITY NOTIFICATIONS:
http://www.facebook.com/cdphe.apcd
http://twitter.com/#!/cdpheapcd
http://www.enviroflash.info/signup.cfm

Winter High Pollution Advisory Program
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The Winter High Pollution Advisory Program is coordinated by the Air Pollution Control Division of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Winter season air pollution forecasts are issued daily from October 31 through March 31 at 4 p.m. When conditions warrant, forecasts will include information about Action Days and subsequent residential burning restrictions.

An Action Day for fine particulates, carbon monoxide or ozone indicates that either current air quality is unhealthy or conditions are expected to worsen later in the day or on the next day. Action Days for air pollutants generally indicate that air quality will be in either the Unhealthy or Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups categories according to the Air Quality Index. Action Days trigger mandatory residential burning restrictions (see residential burning above), voluntary driving reductions, and public health recommendations.

An Action Day for Visibility alone indicates that the Visibility Standard Index for visual air quality is expected to be poor on the current or following day. An Action Day for Visibility will trigger mandatory residential burning restrictions and voluntary driving reductions for the seven-county Denver-Boulder metropolitan area only (see residential burning above).

When no advisories are issued, air quality is good or moderate and is expected to remain so during the effective period of the forecast. No restrictions are in place.

Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment/APCD/Technical Services Program
visit us at: http://www.colorado.gov/airquality - all data are preliminary