[PS in other exo-atmospheric analysis news, the Lunar Prospector
crash-landing experiement failed to prove the existence of water on
the moon...]
October 14, 1999
So. California Has Clean Air Summer
Filed at 9:39 p.m. EDT
By The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Southern California, long reputed to have the
dirtiest air in the United States, finished the cleanest summer smog
season on record, air quality regulators said.
It was also the first summer without a single Stage 1 ozone alert
since air monitoring began about 50 years ago, according to the South
Coast Air Quality Management District.
During a Stage 1, the district advises everyone to avoid vigorous
outdoor exercise and suggests that sensitive persons remain indoors.
The district covers all of Orange County and parts of Los Angeles,
Riverside and San Bernardino counties, encompassing some 15 million
people.
``At the beginning of the decade, we predicted that Stage I episodes
would end by 2000,'' said district executive officer Barry
Wallerstein. ``It appears the region is right on schedule, although
we still could see some Stage 1 episodes over the next few years if
the region experiences extremely stagnant weather.''
The highest recorded level of ozone in the district this year was .17
parts per million, occurring June 20 in the central San Bernardino
Mountains. That was below the .20 ppm level needed for a so-called
Stage 1 episode.