That's because today's official start of the smog season gives the perennial pessimists impetus to denounce automobiles, industry and suburbia for polluting the air and poisoning the children. Respond to these editorials with an email letter to the editor Essential ingredients in the recipe for smog are the hot, stagnant sunny days of summer. The great weather Georgians enjoy is also perfect for turning nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds into ozone. Rain washes pollutants out of the air, wind disperses them and cloudy cool days don't provide the cooking temperature for ozone, the principal ingredient in smog. It's not just fossil fuels that contribute to smog formation.
Nature does, too.
The trees and green space we love so much emit volatile organic compounds that combine with NOx to form ozone. NOx, meanwhile, occurs through bacterial action in soil, lightning, volcanic activity and forest fires. Air quality has improved overall considerably. Since 1970, aggregate air pollution emissions have decreased 64 percent nationwide. That means little when the weather is the deciding factor.