Wildfire smoke is blanketing parts of Colorado this summer following a dry winter, with large fires such as the Aspen Acres fire burning tens of thousands of acres and sending plumes across the state.
Combined with frequent high-ozone days on the Front Range, poor air quality is threatening public health.
The metro Denver area and north Front Range is a severe nonattainment area for federal ozone standards. Ground-level ozone forms when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds react in heat and sunlight. Wildfire smoke adds precursors that can amplify this process, leading to more Ozone Action Days…