Warmer temperatures signal that ozone season is around the corner. For North Texas, ozone season runs from March 1st through the end of November. While the season is identified with those dates, moderate readings can and, in recent years, often do occur outside of the “ozone season”. Already in 2026, there was a moderate reading at the Hood County monitor in late February.
It’s important to be aware of the ozone season because of the negative health impacts of ozone. Ozone can cause irritation of the respiratory system, reduced lung function, increased lung susceptibility to infection, and can aggravate asthma, emphysema and other lung conditions. The negative health impacts of ozone are why the air quality index notes a level of ozone as “unhealthy for sensitive groups”. Children, older adults and those with lung conditions are impacted more by ozone and help make up the “sensitive group” classification. To increase your awareness you can sign up for ozone alert notifications through TCEQ at https://www.tceq.texas.gov/airquality/monops/ozone_email.html/ or Air North Texas at https://www.airnorthtexas.org.
As the new ozone season starts up, it’s a good time to review some of the clean air efforts that individuals can do to help! To reduce emissions from vehicles, minimize vehicle trips by attending meetings virtually, carpooling, or combining trips. It also helps to keep your vehicle maintained including ensuring tire pressure is correct and refueling later in the day. Energy and water efficiency measures help by reducing emissions from power plants. Efficiency measures that help reduce ozone include energy efficient home improvements like choosing energy and water efficient appliances and switching to LED lighting.