Georgia Environmental Protection Division

CODE ORANGE SMOG ALERT: Conditions in Atlanta tomorrow are forecasted to be conducive to ozone pollution formation and accumulation.

HEALTH ADVISORY: People who are sensitive to ozone pollution should make outdoor activities shorter and less intense, take more breaks, and watch for symptoms such as coughing or shortness of breath.

If you see or smell smoke and have respiratory concerns you may need to move indoors, close windows and doors. You can see the current air quality at https://www.airgeorgia.org to help you determine when to continue outdoor activities. To learn more about action you can take, visit https://www.airnow.gov/education/what-you-can-do/.

EPD staff attended the annual Georgia Association of Water Professionals conference in Savannah from July 12-15. The conference hosted over 2,000 water professionals and centered around this year’s theme “Rise Up, Stronger Together.” The Branch gave seven presentations throughout the conference that provided updates on the coastal permitting strategy, drought response efforts, water quality standards triennial review, lead and copper rule improvements, and municipal water/wastewater demand forecasting.

Heading to the beaches this holiday weekend? Check out Georgia beach swimming advisories at https://coastalgadnr.org/healthybeaches. For more information about water quality around the state, visit https://epd.georgia.gov/https%3A/epd.georgia.gov/assessment/water-quality-georgia

GA EPD is sharing information on Harmful Algal Blooms to protect you and your pets. If you see a bloom, please use caution. More information and reporting instructions can be on EPD's website at https://epd.georgia.gov/harmful-algal-blooms

This year’s Air Quality Awareness Week was nothing short of special. It’s a time where we get to share everything we know about Georgia’s air, talk about the strides we’ve made, and how we can continue to improve in the future.

For everyone who participated this year, we appreciate you! Here is just a couple of moments from this last week, including a tour of the state’s biggest ambient monitoring site and a presentation on power generation by Aaron Mitchell from Georgia Power 🔋☁️!

Today’s Air Protection Branch success story is the Georgia Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program.

Inspection and Maintenance Program

The Georgia Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance (I/M) program began in 1979 as a “basic” I/M program after Atlanta was designated as nonattainment for carbon monoxide (CO). At that time, the program was implemented in 4 counties (Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett) and was operated by the Georgia Department of Public Safety. Even though Atlanta achieved attainment for CO in 1991, Atlanta was designated as “serious” nonattainment for ozone. EPA then required Atlanta to implement an “enhanced” I/M program, which started in 1996 and was operated by Georgia EPD. Nine new counties (Cherokee, Clayton, Coweta, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Henry, Paulding, Rockdale) were added to the program. Thanks at least in part to the implementation of the Enhanced I/M program, EPA redesignated Atlanta into attainment of the ozone NAAQS standard in 2022. Since 1996, the I/M Program in Atlanta has led to more than 4.7 million vehicles identified and repaired and over 2.2 million tons of pollutants removed from the air!

Take a look at this week's drought conditions.