Is paying attention to the air quality index crazy? How bad is smoking for the environment?
Dear Cecil: My brother refuses to go running on days the air quality index tells him not to because he doesn’t want to die sooner. My idea: how do we go about proving him insane? — littleWaki We’re always hearing about how much damage smoking does to our bodies. My question is, how much damage does smoking do to the environment? — Jay Cecil replies: Let me get this straight. Your brother is trying to keep fit and avoid air pollution, and you think he’s the crazy one? The air quality index (AQI) was developed by the Environmental Protection Agency as a simple way of indicating how bad the air is at a given moment. Five major pollutants are measured: carbon monoxide, particulates (dust, soot, etc), ozone, and sulfur and nitrogen oxides. Whichever is worst determines the AQI for the day. Ozone and particulates tend to be the leading offenders. The results are color-coded, from green (little or no health risk) through yellow, orange, red, purple, and finally maroon (hazardous). The local A
