The winter season is a beautiful time in Salt lake City, Utah. The large, snow-covered mountain ranges are simply breathtaking. People travel from all over the world to ski and board in Salt Lake City; wanting to try out “the best snow on earth.” But although the winter brings magnificent snow, it also brings a nasty inversion that severely affects the cities air quality.
What exactly is inversion? There are a few different types of inversion that can occur, and Salt Lake experiences what is called Thermal inversion. Basically, when the temperature changes in the winter time, the air becomes more still. Since air does not circulate well around this time of year, it becomes murky because dust and pollutants are no longer lifted from the surface. And due to the fact that the Salt Lake Valley is surrounded by large mountains, the inversion effect bottle-caps the bad air in the city.
Last year Salt Lake City was ranked 36 for high ozone days out of 277 metropolitan areas. High Ozone Days simply means days where there are a high number of respiratory irritants in the air. And for 24-hour particle pollution, Salt Lake City ranked 5 out of 277 metropolitan areas. Better translated, the air in SLC is extremely polluted.
Along with this nasty air, comes a slew of health problems. People do not realize that the air they breathe every day is filled with toxins. The following ailments are common effects of bad air quality:
- Pediatric and adult Asthma
- Various respiratory problems
- Sinus infections/blockages
- Chronic bronchitis
- Headaches
- Emphysema
- Cardiovascular disease
- Cancer
