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Code Orange Ozone
Action Days

• Small Gas Engines
• Aerosols
• Oil-based Paints

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Clean Air Pyramid

Oil-Based Paints

On Code Red Days, refrain from using oil-based paints.
Every year in the Baltimore-Washington area, 40 million pounds of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are released by residents using consumer products such as paints, cleaners, and hairsprays. This is about the same amount of VOCs that would be released by 3 million new cars driving 10,000 miles a year.

On Ozone Action Days, if 20% of us put off using oil-based paints, the amount of VOCs that would be saved would equal that released by 90 typical "smoke stack" industries.

Solvents and oil-based paints contribute to ground level ozone. Traditional water-based paints have very low levels of solvents, about 2-10%, whereas oil-based paints contain higher amounts of solvents, about 30%. Most smog-forming pollutants from paints are emitted during the drying process.

Look for water-based paints that have low or no VOCs. If switching to a water-based paint, consult the manufacturer's label regarding durability and most appropriate uses.

Northern Shenandoah Valley Air Quality Improvement Task Force
Phone: 540-450-2207 | | info@valleyairnow.com