Press Releases

05/07/2025

DEEP Celebrates National Air Quality Awareness Week May 5-9

Stay Air Aware!

(HARTFORD)—To mark National Air Quality Awareness week, which runs May 5-9, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) encourages the public to stay aware of the air quality around you, learn how to protect yourself on poor air quality days, and consider actions you can take to improve your local air quality.

Connecticut suffers from some of the worst air quality in the United States. In 2024, air quality in Connecticut exceeded the federal health-based standards for ozone (smog) on 23 days, putting vulnerable populations (children, seniors, people with respiratory illnesses, and adults who are active outdoors) at risk. Air pollution is linked to respiratory conditions such as asthma and can be a major driver of health care costs: according to the Connecticut Department of Public Health, in 2023, Connecticut incurred nearly $120 million in acute care charges due to asthma as a primary diagnosis.    

We have made great strides in implementing a suite of control strategies to reduce air pollution in Connecticut. But, because we are a downwind state, strong federal action is needed to address the significant amount of air pollution that crosses state boundaries.  EPA’s own modeling shows as much as 96% of the air pollution impacting Connecticut on high ozone days originates outside our borders.

Protecting our air from pollution is always important, but it’s even more important as we head into the summer.  Along with all the fun things that warmer weather brings us, it can also bring high levels of ground level ozone (O₃) and fine particulate matter (PM_2.5).  These two air pollutants pose serious health risks, particularly to vulnerable populations. The good news is that DEEP is working hard everyday, implementing programs that track our air quality and seek to improve our air quality. There are also small actions that each of us can take to help to improve the air quality in our communities.

“High levels of air pollution impact the health of everyone, but sensitive people, including children, the elderly, and those with respiratory disease are at greater risk,” said DEEP Commissioner Katie Dykes.  “I urge everyone to be ‘Air Aware’ this week and beyond, learn more about the air quality in your community and the factors that contribute to it, and to identify small actions you can take to help improve your local air quality.” 

"Air pollution impacts public health through respiratory issues, an increased risk of heart disease and potentially increasing the risk of cancer, " said DPH Commissioner Manisha Juthani, MD. "It is important to heed DEEP's poor air quality warnings and take precautions like limiting outdoor activities. As you take these precautions to protect yourself and your loved ones, consider the importance of pollution prevention. Small adjustments like carpooling, gassing up later in the day and not overfilling your tank can make a difference for you and your community."

More On Negative Health Impacts from Air Pollution

Health Effects: In their 2025 State of the Air Report, the American Lung Association (ALA) found that nearly half of the United States population lives in places with unhealthy levels of air pollution. ALA noted that years of research have identified particle pollution and ground level ozone as a threat to human health.  Furthermore, the ALA’s report shows trends demonstrating that a warming climate will bring increased levels of air pollution, including more high ozone days and spikes in particle pollution from wildfires.  This added pollution will put millions of people at risk and add to Connecticut’s fifty-year struggle to meet federal health-based standards for ozone. 

Ozone Formation and Transport: Unhealthy ozone levels occur during warmer late spring and summer days. Stronger sunshine causes air pollution emitted locally by motor vehicles, power plants and industry, and household activities to combine with air pollution coming into Connecticut from upwind states to react and form ozone.  Ozone levels in Connecticut are highest when winds are from the southwest, carrying interstate air pollution into Connecticut from cities along the Interstate-95 corridor.  During high ozone events, transported ozone is often already at unhealthy levels as winds blow into Connecticut across its western and southern boundaries. Smoke from wildfires may also contribute to ozone levels in Connecticut.  

How DEEP is Protecting Your Air Quality

Ozone Monitoring Season: This week is also the start of DEEP’s 2025 Ozone Forecasting Season. DEEP monitors, tracks, and forecasts daily air quality levels across Connecticut for ozone from May 1 through September 30 each year and for fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) each day of the year.  DEEP will begin informing Connecticut’s regulated community and the general public of the upcoming ozone season via the State of Connecticut E-mail list serve and posting air quality forecasts on the DEEP web page.  To get the latest air quality forecasts from DEEP, sign up here: Get the Latest Air Quality Forecasts from DEEP!.  

DEEP encourages day care providers, summer camps and elder care/senior centers to subscribe to the Air Quality Index (AQI).  Subscribing to the AQI is fast and easy and will provide you with important information each day about Connecticut’s air quality throughout the spring and summer. The AQI provides facts and information regarding ground level ozone, its’ health effects, what to do on a high ozone day, and information about what you can do to help reduce ground level ozone in your own backyard. 

School Flag Program: DEEP is a proud supporter of the EPA’s School Flag Program , which uses colored flags based on the Air Quality Index (AQI) to notify teachers, students, administrators and the local community of air quality conditions.  DEEP encourages Connecticut’s public, private, and state technical schools to participate in the School Flag Program to educate and inform children about ground level ozone, what to do on high ozone days, and its’ health effects.  

Enforcement Action: DEEP investigates complaints, conducts inspections, and takes enforcement action when necessary to ensure permitted facilities are staying in compliance with air quality standards. Late last year, DEEP was pleased to join Attorney General William Tong in announcing a $2 million settlement with Pike Fuels (formerly Gulf Oil) following numerous violations of Connecticut environmental protection laws at its New Haven petroleum distribution facility. The settlement resolved allegations stemming from a DEEP investigation dating back to 2019 that found a series of environmental violations, including years of falsified records, inaccurate emissions reporting, failure to conduct required equipment inspections, failure to report changes and repairs to their storage tanks, non-permitted construction of a new tank, and demolition without inspecting for asbestos-containing materials, among other violations. These violations exposed the neighboring community and the Long Island Sound to increased amounts of volatile organic compounds that can cause respiratory issues, organ damage, and even greater cancer risk.

Highlighting federal actions that would negatively impact air quality: In March, Governor Lamont and Commissioner Dykes issued statements about the negative environmental and public health impacts that would result from a series of proposed actions and regulatory rollbacks announced by the EPA, and both joined environmental and public health advocates in a press conference to further raise awareness.

Transportation Decarbonization Efforts: DEEP continues to work hard to help reduce transportation sector emissions, which is the biggest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions in our state and smog-forming air pollution. We do so through programs such as the CHEAPR Program, which helps remove barriers to purchase of electric and hybrid vehicles; Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) grants, which help municipalities and other qualifying organizations retire older diesel vehicles/machines and replace them with cleaner options; and our distribution of grant opportunities for emissions-mitigating vehicles or charging infrastructure through Volkswagen settlement funds.

National Air Quality Awareness Week

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) continue to sponsor the annual Air Quality Awareness Week.  This year it is held from May 5 through May 9, 2025, and urges all Americans to “Stay Air Aware” by providing topical information on air quality each day and how it impacts the public.   You can learn more about the week and the daily themes on EPA’s website here, and you can also follow DEEP’s social media accounts (listed at the end of this release) for more information on the daily themes.

Air Quality Awareness Week 2025 daily topics: 

• Monday, May 5 - Wildland Fires and Smoke 
• Tuesday, May 6 - Asthma and Your Health 
• Wednesday, May 7 - Indoor Air Quality 
• Thursday, May 8 - Air, Animals and Plants 

Do Your Part: Help Prevent Unhealthy Levels of Ozone

Here are some examples of everyday actions you can take to improve air quality in your community, and how to stay air aware:

• Drive Less – consider carpooling, vanpooling, using public transit or even telecommuting; 
• Make Smart Energy Choices-Check out Home Page | EnergizeCT for some great energy smart choices you can make today 
• Drive Clean – consider purchasing or leasing an electric vehicle. Learn more by visiting: www.driveelectricus.com and CHEAPR - Home (ct.gov); 
• Reduce or Shift Electricity Use– purchase energy efficient products like ENERGY STAR^® LED lights and ENERGY STAR^® air conditioning, use programmable thermostats set to 78^o or higher when no one is home, and use energy intensive appliances like washing machines, dryers and dishwashers later in the day; 
• Be Aware of Your Air – Understand the Air Quality Index and sign up to receive alerts so you will know when air quality is predicted to be unhealthy;  
• Small changes add up – When you know there will be an unhealthy air day, make small changes to your routine to protect yourself and the environment: 
  • Refuel your vehicle after dusk and stop refueling when the nozzle clicks off, 
  • Avoid idling your vehicle unnecessarily and keep tire pressures at their recommended level, 
  • Delay the use of gasoline-powered lawn and garden equipment until later in the day when temperatures are cooler,
  • Limit your outdoor activity in the heat of the day, 
  • Refrain from recreational wood burning; 
• Remember that knowledge is power! Ask your local school if they participate in the School Flag Program, EPA’s Air Quality awareness tool that uses colored flags based on the AQI to notify teachers, students, administrators and the local community of air quality conditions. 
• Stay connected and access the daily AQI forecast and real-time air quality data 
  • Follow us on X 
  • Sign up to get Air-Quality alerts through Enviroflash 
  • Visit DEEP’s AQI webpage or call 800-249-1234 
  • Go to EPA’s AIRNow web page 
  • Download EPA’s AIRnow app for your phone

Twitter: @CTDEEPNews

Facebook: DEEP on Facebook

Contact

DEEP Communications  
DEEP.communications@ct.gov
860-424-3110

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