BROOKFIELD, Wis. - Checking air quality in Wisconsin is now as easy as dialing 1-866-Daily Air. The statewide, toll-free air-quality hotline is sponsored by the American Lung Association in Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Clear Air Choice program.
Jolene McNutt, coordinator of the Clean Fuels and Vehicles Program for the American Lung Association in Wisconsin, says all you have to do is dial the digits: 1-866-324-5924.
"It's really a great way to just check in and monitor the air quality in your area. Each morning, you can get up and dial 1-866-Daily-Air. It's very quick, very easy to do - you just enter in your county. Then you know what's out there."
People with asthma or other respiratory illnesses are particularly vulnerable to air pollution, she adds. May, which is Clean Air Month, marks the beginning of ozone season.
The 2011 American Lung Association State of the Air report points out that while air quality is improving in Wisconsin state, thousands of Wisconsinites still live in counties with unhealthy levels of air pollution.
McNutt says driving a flex-fuel vehicle and using E-85 fuel are ways to help improve Wisconsin's air quality. She adds there's a website designed to help anyone learn more about them.
"If people want to know more about fuels and something they can do to really make a tangible difference, our website, www.CleanAirChoice.org, is a good resource. It has information on E-85 and other clean-air-choice fuels, and you can find out if you drive a flex-fuel vehicle."
Driving a flex-fuel vehicle and using E-85 can reduce ozone and particle pollution by up to 20 percent, McNutt says.
