News Releases - 2000

Illinois EPA Reports Continued Air Quality Improvements For 1999

Springfield, IL -- Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director Tom Skinner announced today the Agency's new 1999 Air Quality Report showed healthy outdoor air conditions were recorded throughout the year in the Chicago area and on all but six days statewide.

The Chicago metropolitan area had no days last year when ozone levels exceeded the federal one-hour air quality standard for ground-level ozone, the first time that has occurred since 1993. Ground-level ozone is a respiratory irritant found in smog.

The Chicago metro area has continued to experience a trend of declining ozone levels, based on similar weather conditions. In 1983, for example, there were 15 days in which the federal health standard was exceeded, despite meteorological conditions similar to 1999.

"The lower ozone levels in the Chicago area are the result of continuing emissions reductions achieved through implementation of the requirements under the Clean Air Act, and the impact of the area's Ozone Action Day program which began in 1995," said Skinner.

Skinner noted air emissions of the two major pollutants that contribute to the formation of ozone --nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds-- have substantially declined in the past few decades, despite continued economic growth in Illinois. Illinois EPA estimates there were 421,993 tons of nitrogen oxides emitted in 1999, compared to 826,427 tons in 1981. The Agency estimates 99,121 tons of volatile organic compounds were released into the air in 1999, compared to 270, 814 in 1981.

According to the 1999 Air Quality Report, which is now available on the Illinois EPA's web site (www.epa.state.il.us), there were two days in the Metro-East (St.Louis) area and four in adjacent Jersey County during 1999 when the ozone health standard was exceeded. That compares with one day in the Chicago metro area and seven in the Metro-East area during 1998 when the standard was exceeded.

The Illinois EPA maintains more than 200 monitors statewide that track levels of six pollutants with federal health-based standards --called criteria pollutants-- as well as other pollutants and compounds.

Again in 1999, there were no violations of the health standards anywhere in Illinois for the other criteria pollutants (particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and lead).

Director Skinner also said a recent U.S. EPA report which used monitoring data from 1989-1998 found that of 94 major metropolitan areas across the country, Chicago had better air quality than 53 other cities, for ground-level ozone.

However, Director Skinner noted the Chicago and Metro East areas still have not met the federal standard for ozone. "We have made great progress but more efforts to reduce pollution-causing emissions are necessary before we achieve full compliance."

Related Information

• Illinois Annual Air Quality Reports