Tom is a 25+ year resident of Germantown and the surrounding community. He currently lives in Hubertus with his wife and two small kids on a hobby farm near Bark Lake. Tom's blog will likely not save the world, but hopefully, you'll get some enjoyment from his ramblings.
On Tuesday, May 29, 2007, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources issued its first “Air Quality Watch” of the year for most of Southeastern Wisconsin. As you probably know, this was the first of many to come as we head into what is expected to be typically long, hot and humid Wisconsin summer. These days will also be issued as warnings, and by other names such as Ozone Alert Days.
Now I must admit that our local media does a fine job of announcing these throughout the summer, as you hear about it on the radio, in the local paper or on local newscasts over and over again. But I must also admit that I never really paid much attention to the warnings! I have a fairly active family, and between our numerous activities and work schedules, finding a day to mow the lawn is hard enough. Thus, I’d usually mow my lawn, drive all around town and fire up the central air on one of these days despite the warnings that I shouldn’t. Shame on me!
My curiosity got the best of me when I heard the announcement of a watch last week, so I did a little research on-line. There are three great sites that will all offer you tons of information, tips, and guidance on why we should all pay a little closer attention to these air quality watches and warnings. Since I haven’t mastered the art of inserting URL’s onto my blog yet, you’ll need to Google these, but the following are the three sites I’d refer you to: 1) Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources 2) Wisconsin Partners for Clean Air and 3) The Environmental Protection Agency. After reading as much information as my insomnia would allow, I definitely changed my view of how I’ll handle these days in the future. For me the biggest “shocker” was to learn of the long-term and harmful affects of low-level ozone on our natural resources, which I treasure dearly! It was also interesting to learn that Southeastern Wisconsin is unique in its vulnerability to the affects of harmful gases compared to anywhere else in the world.
So, what should we do, or better yet, not do, on one of these days? In a nutshell, all three agencies promote the following during an Air Quality watch or warning:
- Reduce driving whenever possible
- Postpone the use of small gasoline and diesel engines
- Avoid burning leaves and brush
- Practice energy conservation
After you read up on the harmful effects of ozone and other harmful gases to our health and environment, I’m sure you’ll come to the same conclusion as me, that the small sacrifices mentioned above are well worth it. Even if you choose not to read further, maybe you’ll agree with my refreshed opinion on the subject, which is, why spend a hot and humid summer day mowing the lawn when you could be spending that same time enjoying a couple cool refreshments with your friends and family!?
Here’s to a long, hot, humid and environmentally responsible summer!
Life is something that happens when you can't get to sleep. ~Fran Lebowitz
