Evaluation of the 'Clean Air Works' program on actual ozone concentrations: a case study in North Carolina

This study examines the effectiveness of the 'Clean Air Works' program in the state of North Carolina on ozone concentration levels. 'Clean Air Works' is a voluntary program which educates people about the negative effects of air pollution on health. The contribution of this study is that it examines three effects: The effectiveness of the 'Clean Air Works' program in the Charlotte Area of North Carolina State and whether ozone smog alerts are more effective under this program. Finally, the effects on ozone levels coming from the change in the warning threshold from 80 particles per billion (ppb) to 75 ppb, which took place in 2008, are established. In all cases, we find reduction in ground-level ozone levels and improvement of the air quality in the treatment group where the 'Clean Air Works' program is implemented