Posted inBusiness, Climate, Energy, Environment, Equity, Health, News

Colorado’s legislative efforts are not enough to solve its Front Range ozone problem

By Jim Robbins, KHN A year after health officials issued a record number of alerts for high ozone levels on Colorado’s Front Range, federal and state officials are trying to rein in the gas that can make outdoor activities a health risk. But new Colorado laws aimed at improving air quality along that urban corridor east […]

Posted inClimate, Environment, Equity, Health, News

How Colorado’s changing climate is putting children’s health at risk

This March, Colorado State Sen. Faith Winter stood at a podium in the State Capitol and spoke to a gathered crowd about reducing the state’s air pollution. After introductions, Winter, Gov. Jared Polis and others unveiled a package of environmental bills that aim to increase access to public transit, build more energy efficient buildings, and construct safe […]

Posted inCOVID, Health, News

COVID vaccines don’t work for some people. For them, the pandemic remains terrifying.

Two weeks after her first shot of the Moderna COVID vaccine, Lori Welker went in for a blood test. Then she held her breath. The Denver mother of two suffers from EGPA — eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis, a rare inflammatory condition. It’s well controlled now, she says, but for years she received twice-a-year infusions of […]

Posted inEnvironment, Health, News, Transportation

WHO says air pollution caps should be much tougher in Colorado, U.S.

The World Health Organization says areas like Colorado’s Front Range counties need stringent new air pollution limits, firing a daunting challenge at Colorado leaders already scrambling to catch up to less-onerous restrictions imposed by the EPA.  The new WHO guidelines released Wednesday, developed by hundreds of scientists around the world, including Colorado State University environmental […]

Posted inClimate, Environment, Health, News, Wildfire

Smoke from faraway wildfires may be worse for Coloradans than if it came from blazes in their own backyards

For long stretches of the summer the Front Range has been bathed in smoke traveling hundreds of miles from California and Oregon wildfires and it turns out that long-range smoke could be more dangerous than the fumes from homegrown forest fires. Some initial studies have shown that long-range smoke may be more toxic and since […]

Posted inClimate, Environment, Health

Should I let my kids outside? and other Colorado air pollution questions

Most of the scorching days this summer on Colorado’s Front Range have come with an air pollution “action alert” from the state government, warning people with sensitive respiratory issues to take extra caution in the presence of elevated ozone or PM2.5 particulate matter drifting in on wildfire smoke.  What does that mean, exactly, if you’re […]

Posted inEnvironment, News, Transportation

Colorado violates EPA ozone standards again as business groups cheer gutting of draft commuting limits

On the same day environmental groups called out Colorado officials for missing a key EPA deadline to clean up ozone pollution violations widely attributed to driving, business groups declared victory in weakening the state’s new set of rules to reduce air pollution caused by employee car commutes. The double whammy was not lost on conservationists, […]