Rory O'Neill talks Alabama air quality

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Roniel joined us now to take a look what kind
of air we're breathing. A new study is out now
and I dare ask how Alabama is done in the
study of this unhealthy air situation in our world.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Yeah. So this is the American Lung Association now with
their annual report on the status and the quality of
the air that we breathe. They actually found that across
the country about half of Americans can sometimes during the
year breathe poor quality air. But it's not all because
of that car parked parked on the interstate, stuck in

(00:32):
a traffic jam, or the factory spewing smoke from smokestacks. Instead, wildfires, drought,
and extreme heat are causing more of the poor air
that we breathe. On one hundred and fifty six million
Americans are experiencing poor air quality now. The folks on
this report find that most of the trouble spots are
on the West Coast in California and Alaska as well

(00:56):
due to some volcanic activity up there. Birmingham, Alabama in
Okay fifty fourth at worst when it comes to high
ozone days that will be smong and thirty ninth worst
when it comes to that particulate pollution that can get
kicked up in the air we breed, so not terrible
numbers along the way, But again, the worst offenders are

(01:16):
going to be out west.

Speaker 1 (01:17):
Yeah, and who has the best air in the country.

Speaker 2 (01:20):
Well, let me who has the best air in the country.
I think it's people that live in the most. I
was so focused on all the negative nellies out there
that I never lived. I see, what kind of are
you in?

Speaker 1 (01:34):
I don't know. I got to tell you. I think
it's probably, like you said, in the middle of the country,
somewhere in a cornfield.

Speaker 2 (01:41):
Augusta, Georgia, Casper, Wyoming, and Asheville, North Carolina all have
some of the cleanest.

Speaker 1 (01:46):
Augustine, Georgia. Interesting, I would have never seen that. Interesting.

Speaker 2 (01:50):
All those golf courses, yeah, Bangermain also did well. And
a couple of spots on Hawaii.

Speaker 1 (01:58):
Yeah, well, well there you go, beautiful island with the
cool breeze. Old times, very nice. I got to think
the pollen count would be considered a pollutant as well.
But you know, getting the rain now, gosh, we could
use it. But you know, my throat right now it
feels like somebody dusted it with pollen overnight.

Speaker 2 (02:15):
You know, my car needs the free wash too.

Speaker 1 (02:17):
That's yeah, all right, Well let's talk about where people
live in most cities now much less expensive than buying
if you're going to be renting. So are more people
moving to the renting world these days?

Speaker 2 (02:29):
Well, that's what we're seeing is that when you run
the numbers down, depending on where you are in the country,
but it looks like there's a thirty eight percent difference
in renting versus buying. That's according to the new report
out this morning from Bankrate. They find that the cost
of home ownership is also escalating, as is the cost
of rent. Out there in the Birmingham area, they've got

(02:50):
average monthly rents at fourteen hundred dollars, but the average
monthly mortgage payment is eighteen hundred dollars. So that's a
thirty three percent difference. And I can hear people shouting
right now, Yeah, you pay your wrent to somebody else,
you pay your mortgage, you're essentially paying yourself, right, you're
investing in yourself. But it depends on where you are
in life. Are you are you willing to settle down?

(03:12):
Do you think that this is the place you want
to stay. What's the deal with the marital situation with kids?

Speaker 1 (03:18):
They?

Speaker 2 (03:18):
Are you having kids? Are the kids moving out? You know,
a lot of these numbers are going to be very
different for where you are in life right now.

Speaker 1 (03:24):
Very good, Roy, thank you for the update. I appreciate you, buddy,