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US Government Warns Utah About Unsafe Ozone Levels

Salt Lake City and other Utah cities warned about unsafe Ozone levels
Phys.org
Salt Lake City Air Pollution

Utah state regulators are announcing that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has issued a written warning about ozone pollution levels that exceed federal thresholds in seven counties.

The Utah Department of Environmental Quality said Tuesday in a news release that the EPA has given the state three years to reign in the pollution problems. If not, the state must come up with an official action plan to deal with the situation.

Ozone levels flare up during the summer in Salt Lake, Davis, Weber, Tooele and Utah counties along the Wasatch Front with car emissions being a main contributor. They occur in the winter in parts of Uintah and Duchesne counties where oil and gas operations are prevalent.

The determination was based on ozone readings taken from 2014-2016.