Environmental groups forced the ironically-named Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) hand by suing them for not adequately regulating pollution. The upshot: 300 cities and counties nationwide are in violation of the new, stricter standards – up from 85 counties based on the old rules. One in ten U.S. counties is over the new limit for ozone levels.

According to the Daily Green excess ozone, generated by factory smokestacks and the tailpipes of our good friend the car “...interacts with heat and sunlight, primarily on hot summer days. It can trigger asthma attacks, permanently scar lung tissue and contribute to respiratory and heart diseases. It can also damage crops, forests and other ecosystems.”

EPA scientists actually believed that more stringent air pollution restrictions were required by law. The Bush administration stepped in to soften the blow to industry and allow one-third more pollution than the EPA's Science Advisory Board deemed safe and legal.

Photos via flickr by pfala and Simone Ramella.

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