Apr 25, 2013 2 min read

The Pittsburgh region once again finished high on the American Lung Association’s list of most-polluted areas, although the most recent study showed it to be making minor improvements in air quality.

The 2013 “State of the Air” report released Wednesday shows the region has made improvements since last year – most notably in Washington County – but it still ranks near the bottom in three pollution categories.

The region finished seventh in the country in short-term particle pollution, eighth in year-round particle pollution and 24th for most ozone-polluted city.

Washington County improved its overall weighted “letter grade” from a D to a C, according to the American Lung Association. Allegheny County still earned an overall grade of F, the same rating it had in 2012.

“Even though Southwestern Pennsylvania experienced increases in unhealthy days of high soot pollution, the air quality is still better compared to a decade ago,” said Deb Brown, president and chief executive officer of the American Lung Association’s Mid-Atlantic region. “But the work is not done and we must set stronger health standards for pollutants and clean up sources of pollution in Southwestern Pennsylvania to protect the health of our citizens.”

The American Lung Association’s complete air quality report can be found at www.stateoftheair.org.