Ozone Concentration [Washington (State)]
State of Washington Geospatial Open Data Portal · 2025 Full Details
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Full Details
- Title
- Ozone Concentration [Washington (State)]
- Description
- This data is included as part of the Environmental Health Disparities Version 3.0 map. To see this map, visit our webpage . For more technical information on this map and the model used, visit our technical report (link) . Background Ozone is a gas in the upper atmosphere that helps us by absorbing harmful sunlight. However, when ozone forms closer to the ground, it becomes a harmful pollutant. Ground-level ozone is created by chemical reactions between pollutants like volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), which are released by vehicles, factories, wood burning, and gasoline. Ozone levels can change based on sunlight and emissions. Ozone levels are often higher on sunny days or in places with lots of traffic or factories. Breathing in too much ozone can cause serious health problems, especially for people living with lung or heart conditions. It is linked to higher rates of asthma, more hospital visits, and even early death. Ozone pollution also harms the environment. It can stunt plant growth, damage crops, and make it harder for plants to absorb carbon dioxide. Evidence Breathing in ozone can cause inflammation of the airways and increase the risk of early death. In children, it can lead to more hospitalizations for breathing trouble [1]. Factors like age, sex, and race can affect how vulnerable people are to ozone exposure [2, 3]. Dust and wildfires can increase ozone levels and lead to more emergency room visits [4]. Over 123 million people in the U.S. are exposed to harmful ozone levels, contributing to an estimated 30,000 to 64,000 early deaths. To fully understand ozone's effects, more research is needed on how factors like age, job, sex, and race play a role. The strongest evidence shows that the elderly, women, people who are unemployed, and people in blue-collar jobs are at higher risk. There is less evidence about differences based on education, income, or access to central air conditioning [5, 6]. Ozone pollution harms ecosystems too. It can stunt plant growth, damage crops, and reduce plants' ability to absorb carbon dioxide, which is important for fighting climate change. This harms food production and causes broader environmental damage [7]. Data source Ozone 2022-2024 estimates from the Washington State Department of Ecology Methods This measure looks at peak ozone concentrations from 2022-2024.These are estimated for 5km x 5km grid cells across Washington. Concentrations are estimated by combining expected levels from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) forecast model with measured concentrations from the Washington Ambient Air Monitoring Network. The NOAA forecast model accounts for emissions, meteorology, and topography. The differences between the modeled and measured concentrations are calculated across the grid. This is combined with the forecast model to produce daily maximum 8-hour ozone concentrations. The 4 th highest annual daily ozone concentration (as is defined by the EPA to be used to compare to the federal standard) is then calculated for all points in the grid. Each census tract is assigned the ozone level of its most populated grid cell. Grid cell populations were estimated using 2020 census block groups. The Department of Ecology created custom ranking which place the data into 3 ppb intervals: 43-45.9, 46-48.9, 49-51.9, 52-54.9, 55-57.9, 58-60.9, 61-63.9, 64-66.9, 67-69.9, and 70+. Areas not meeting federal health standards were given a score rank of 10. More information about federal ozone standards can be found at https://www.epa.gov/ground-level- ozone-pollution/timeline-ozone-national-ambient-air-quality-standards-naaqs Ozone monitoring data are available from the Washington Department of Ecology at https://enviwa.ecology.wa.gov/mobile The NOAA ozone forecasts are available at: https://airquality.weather.gov/ Caveats This me thod assumes ozone levels are the same throughout each census tract. However, ozone can vary within smaller areas, especially in rural areas where census tracts are typically large. Because the same ozone level is used for the entire census tract, it might not reflect the true air quality in some communities. For more detailed data, view the 5km x 5km ozone dataset as an overlay by clicking on the EHD map topic on the information by location tool: Information by Location , Washington Tracking Network (WTN) Sources Fann, N., Lamson, A. D., Anenberg, S. C., Wesson, K., Risley, D., & Hubbell, B. J. (2012). Estimating the national public health burden associated with exposure to ambient PM2.5 and ozone. Risk analysis : an official publication of the Society for Risk Analysis , 32 (1), 81-95. Bell, M. L., & Dominici, F. (2008). Effect modification of the short-term effects of ozone on mortality in older adults. American Journal of Epidemiology , 167(6), 672-677. Medina-Ramón, M., & Schwartz, J. (2007). Temperature, temperature extremes, and mortality: a study of acclimatisation and effect modification in 50 US cities. Occupational and environmental medicine , 64 (12), 827-833. Kelly, F. J., & Fussell, J. C. (2020). Global nature of airborne particle toxicity and health effects: a focus on megacities, wildfires, dust storms and residential biomass burning. Toxicology research , 9 (4), 331-345. Bell, M. L., Zanobetti, A., & Dominici, F. (2014). Who is more affected by ozone pollution? A systematic review and meta-analysis. American journal of epidemiology , 180 (1), 15-28. Malley, C. S., Henze, D. K., Kuylenstierna, J. C. I., Vallack, H. W., Davila, Y., Anenberg, S. C., Turner, M. C., & Ashmore, M. R. (2017). Updated Global Estimates of Respiratory Mortality in Adults ≥30Years of Age Attributable to Long-Term Ozone Exposure. Environmental health perspectives, 125(8), 087021. Citation Washington Tracking Network, Washington State Department of Health. Web. "Ozone Concentration". Data obtained from the Department of Ecology, 2022-2024 Ozone Concentration Data. Published September 2025.
- Creator
- WADOH
- Publisher
- State of Washington Geospatial Open Data Portal
- Temporal Coverage
- Last Modified: 2025-07-16
- Date Issued
- 2025-07-09
- Rights
- Neither the Washington State Department of Health (WADOH), nor any agency, officer, or employee of the WADOH warrants the accuracy, reliability or timeliness of any information published by this system, nor endorses any content, viewpoints, products, or services linked from this system, and shall not be held liable for any losses caused by reliance on the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of such information. Portions of such information may be incorrect or not current. Any person or entity who relies on any information obtained from this system does so at their own risk.
- Access Rights
- Public
- Format
- ArcGIS FeatureLayer
- Language
- English
- Date Added
- February 02, 2026
- Provenance Statement
- The metadata for this resource was last retrieved from State of Washington Geospatial Open Data Portal on 2026-02-02.
Cite and Reference
-
Citation
WADOH (2025). Ozone Concentration [Washington (State)]. State of Washington Geospatial Open Data Portal. https://geo.wa.gov/datasets/5bb0b4d2d4f643f482598b33b975f932_0 (web service) -
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