Archuleta County was named one of the cleanest counties in the nation in terms of ozone air pollution in the American Lung Association’s “State of the Air” 2025 report.
The 26th annual nationwide “State of the Air” report was released on April 23 and is available at lung.org/sota.
The report grades exposure to unhealthy levels of ground-level ozone air pollution (also known as smog), and year-round and short-term spikes in particle pollution (also known as soot) over a three-year period. The report looks at the latest quality-assured air quality data from 2021-2023.
“Families across the U.S. are dealing with the health impacts of air pollution every day, and extreme heat and wildfires are making it worse. Air pollution is causing kids to have asthma attacks, making people who work outdoors sick, and leading to low birth weight in babies. This year’s report shows the dramatic impact that air pollution has on a growing number of people,” said Harold Wimmer, president and CEO of the American Lung Association, via a press release on the report.
According to the report, nearly half of the people living in the U.S. breathe unhealthy levels of air pollution.
In total, the report finds that 156 million people (46 percent), 25 million more than last year’s report, are living in areas that received an “F” grade for either ozone or particle pollution. Extreme heat and wildfires contributed to worse air quality for millions of people across the U.S.
A press release on the report notes that both ozone and particle pollution can cause premature death and other serious health effects such as asthma attacks, heart attacks and strokes, preterm births and impaired cognitive functioning later in life. Particle pollution can also cause lung cancer.
The press release notes, “Extreme heat and wildfires contributed to the increase in ozone levels for many parts of the country, most notably in central states from Minnesota to Texas.”
Archuleta County results
Archuleta County received an “A” in the report, with no high ozone days recorded between 2021 and 2023.
It is one of two counties in Colorado to earn the designation, alongside Mesa County.
Within Colorado, 23 out of 64 counties could be graded for at least one measure of air quality, according to the association’s website.
“Ground-level ozone pollution, also known as smog, is a powerful respiratory irritant whose effects have been likened to a sunburn of the lungs,” the press release explains. “Inhaling ozone can cause shortness of breath, trigger coughing and asthma attacks and may shorten life. Warmer temperatures driven by climate change make ozone more likely to form and harder to clean up.”
Data on high particle pollution days was not collected for Archuleta County during the same time period.
More on Colorado’s air quality in the report can be found at https://www.lung.org/research/sota/city-rankings/states/colorado.
randi@pagosasun.com
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