Metro Health Alerts Public of Ozone Action Day for May 18, 2023

Published on May 17, 2023

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SAN ANTONIO (May 17, 2023) - The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has issued an Ozone Action Day for the San Antonio area for Thursday, May 18, 2023.  
 
Atmospheric conditions are expected to be favorable for producing high levels of ozone air pollution in the San Antonio area tomorrow. This is the first Ozone Action Day alert in 2023.
 
On Ozone Action Days, young children, older adults, 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. Those who have asthma or difficulty breathing, it is strongly encouraged to stay indoors. 

To help keep local air conditions healthy, residents and businesses are also encouraged to voluntarily practice certain pollution-reducing activities such as:

• Refueling cars and trucks after 6 p.m.
• Avoid using the drive-thru at restaurants. Go inside instead.
• Turning a vehicle off instead of idling
• Setting thermostats 2 to 3 degrees higher from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.; setting programmable thermostats to higher temperatures when no one is home. The optimum energy-saving temperature is 78 degrees.
• Carpooling or using public transportation
• Combining errands to reduce trips

The City of San Antonio Metropolitan Health District (Metro Health) encourages everyone to act and help improve the City’s air quality. For more detailed information about ground-level ozone, the community can visit SanAntonio.gov/health.