Air Quality Information

Air quality is a tangible issue for many people, including business professionals and private citizens, yet air quality is difficult to touch, see, taste or smell. Specifically, ground-level ozone is a problem because it can trigger health and environmental problems, such asthma attacks and even crop damage. Ground-level ozone forms as a result of emissions reacting with the sun. In Michigan this happens in the warmer summer months (May-September).

On days with the weather potential to create ground-level ozone is great, meteorologists declare Ozone Action days (see How Ozone Action Days are Forecasted and Take Ozone Action). On these days, and everyday, the West Michigan Clean Air Coalition encourages everyone to join together and voluntarily implement actions at work, home, or in your vehicle that can reduce emissions and clear the air (see What Can I Do?).

Please explore the links from this page regarding What is Ozone?, Factors that Contibute to the Formation of Ozone, a Quick Ozone Lesson, an Air Quality Q&A, and other interesting air quality facts. If you are interested in becoming notified when it is an Ozone Action day, visit the Become Notified page.

The West Michigan Clean Air Coalition is a partnership of businesses, academic institutions, government agencies, industry, and non-profit organizations in Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, and Kalamazoo counties working together to achieve cleaner air in the region through the education and promotion of voluntary emission reduction activities.