5:27 PM

The short film 5:27 P.M., Directed by Jeremiah Cowell, shows New York City’s streets during rush hour at 5:27 p.m. It artistically depicts how our transportation system and our environment are strained by excessive vehicular travel. These striking images serve as a reminder that improving air quality in the New York metro area is important, and that we can all contribute by finding ways to reduce our vehicular travel.

The Science Behind Ground-Level Ozone

We at Clean Air NY continue to tell New Yorkers to help reduce ground-level ozone pollution, but what exactly is it and where does it come from?

Vehicular Air Pollution: What Is It and Where Does It Come From?
Motor vehicles play a major role in air pollution. They are the single largest contributor of the precursors of ground-level ozone, which is a significant urban pollutant. Ozone is created from burning fossil fuels and vehicle use and contributes to cardiovascular and respiratory problems.

Here's the Science
Motor vehicles generate three major pollutants: hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide.

• Hydrocarbons react with nitrogen oxides in the presence of sunlight (ultraviolet radiation) to form ground-level ozone
• Nitrogen oxides also help form acid rain.
• Carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless, deadly gas, can impair mental and visual functions and have other negative effects at high levels of exposure.

Pollutants are released as a result of vehicle use when:

• Fuel is burned in the internal combustion engine and the combustion products are emitted through the tailpipe.
• Heat causes fuel to evaporate from under the hood and throughout the fuel system. Hot, sunny days and engines warmed by running provide heat to vaporize fuel into the air.
• Cars refuel at service stations, where gasoline vapors escape into the air.

Ground-Level Ozone Pollution and Your Health
Short-term exposure to elevated levels of ozone can cause eye, nose and throat irritation, respiratory symptoms and decreases in lung function. The respiratory symptoms can include shortness of breath, chest pain and coughing. An increased risk of developing asthma has been found among students who likely experienced long-term elevated ozone exposure because they participated in athletic programs in areas with high ozone levels. (New York State Department of Health)

Elevated ozone levels mainly occur between May and September. It’s important to know when they happen, so be sure to sign up to receive Air Quality Action Day Updates from Clean Air NY by texting AIR to 42269 or by visiting CleanAirNY.org.

Win Free Metrocards from Clean Air NY this Summer!

image by Rambling Traveler (Stacy) used under Creative Commons license

Are you looking for something fun and free to do this summer? Join Clean Air NY and 106.7 Lite FM for Broadway in Bryant Park on Thursday afternoons, starting July 7 through Aug. 11! Each week in Bryant Park (behind the New York Public Library on 6th Avenue between 40th and 42nd street), from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., attendees can enjoy performances from the hottest shows on and off Broadway, including Hair, Jersey Boys, Rent, the Lion King, Avenue Q and Mamma Mia! We will be giving away great prizes each week, too!

Anyone who signs up to receive our Air Quality Action Day updates at Broadway in Bryant Park will be entered into a drawing. The grand prize each week is a one-month MetroCard. Two other winners will get front-row seats and free lunches at a future Broadway in Bryant Park event — so bring your friends and encourage them to sign up! On top of that, we are running a photo-tagging contest on our Facebook page. We’ll take your picture with our mascot and upload it to the Clean Air NY Facebook photo album – all you have to do is tag your picture you will be entered to win a $10 MetroCard. Check out some of the awesome pictures from previous events.

We hope to see you in Bryant Park this summer!