Houston makes top 10 for least healthy air quality
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The Houston region continues to rank as one of the worst metros nationwide for air pollution, according to new data.
Why it matters: Air pollution is a serious threat to health, particularly for children, elderly people and those who have asthma or other lung conditions.
- The region has repeatedly failed to meet air quality standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency.
The big picture: Nearly 40% of Americans live in areas with unhealthy levels of ozone or particle pollution, according to the American Lung Association's latest "State of the Air" report on ground-level ozone.
- Houston is the seventh worst out of 228 metro areas for its number of high ozone days.
Zoom in: Brazoria, Galveston, Harris and Montgomery counties all received Fs in the report.
Flashback: Houston led the state in the number of ozone action days in 2024 with 49, where excessive ozone is unhealthy for certain people.
- That was down from 51 days in 2023 and 55 in 2022.
Context: The EPA's strictest air quality standard, set in 2015, sets an ozone limit of 70 parts per billion.
Threat level: One-hour ozone levels last year in the Houston region reached 144 parts per billion, well above federal standards.
- In late March, Houston experienced five days of an eight-hour average of 81 parts per billion of ozone as the ozone season, which runs from March to November, kicks off.
Between the lines: President Trump has targeted environmental regulations, including by attempting to end bans on "forever chemicals" and boosting U.S. oil and gas production.
- Still, the federal air quality standards in the Clean Air Act — which has been updated several times since it was passed in the 1960s — are in place.
Yes, but: Not all of the ozone is from human-made pollution. Extreme heat and severe weather could be partly to blame.
Worthy of your time: Check Houston's air quality forecast on AirNow.