April was designated as the official start of the 2008 ozone season for states in Region 3. It is a time for everyone to keep abreast of air quality conditions, especially at-risk populations such as asthma sufferers and the elderly who need to protect themselves from ground level ozone exposure. Ground-level ozone is formed when volatile organic compounds and nitrous oxide in the air react in the presence of sunlight and hot temperatures during the warmer months of the year. People interested in air quality conditions can access the EPA AIRNow Web site for air quality information at (
http://www.epa.gov/airnow/
VIRGINIA STRATEGIZES TO REDUCE GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS 30 PERCENT BY 2025
EPA regional representatives attended the Virginia Climate Change Commission meeting on March 27 in Charlottesville, Va. The meeting included presentations on the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
to the world community, a summary of local, state, regional and federal approaches to address climate change,
and natural sequestration: the role of nature (forests, oceans) in capturing and storing carbon emissions. It was announced that Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine's Commission on Climate Change will issue a report by Dec. 15 on the steps Virginia needs to take to achieve 30 percent emissions reductions in its greenhouse gas emissions by 2025. For more information, visit:
http://www.deq.virginia.gov/info/climatechange.html.
Envirobytes - An Environmental Newsletter, Summary of Issues and Events for Week Ending April 4, 2008
U. S. EPA, Mid-Atlantic Region (Region 3), West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware,
and the District of Columbia.