Discuss, consider, and take appropriate action on proclaiming April 29 - May 3, 2019 as AIR QUALITY AWARENESS WEEK in Williamson County.

Ozone Season is upon us. Here in Central Texas, it runs from April 1 – November 30. Ground-level ozone, as defined by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is a gas that is created by chemical reactions between nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the presence of sunlight. Emissions from industrial facilities, electric facilities, motor vehicle exhaust, and gasoline vapors are only a partial list of sources of ozone-forming emissions. Additionally, living organisms and biological processes can also contribute to the formation of ozone.

Williamson County and the rest of the metro area are at risk of violating federal air quality standards and being designated “nonattainment” for the ozone standard. Designation of non-attainment would be devastating to Williamson County and our economy, because it would severely curtail business expansion, and once on the non-attainment list, it takes many years of continuous air quality monitoring to prove a region is back in attainment.
Ozone is bad for your health, especially for persons who have respiratory ailments. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists the following groups most likely to experience health effects caused by ozone:

• People with asthma or other lung diseases
• Older adults
• People of all ages who exercise or work hard outside
• Babies and children