Kansas should market

its lack of smog

in the atmosphere

We've tried "Land of ah's," "Simply wonderful" and "Linger longer" in the past. We're still trying to make hay with "As big as you think." How about this for a great way to recruit people and businesses to Kansas? "We've got clean air."

Now that's a state slogan that will catch people's attention.

According to a report released by the Environmental Protection Agency last week, Kansas is one of only 10 states in the country in which every county meets health standards for smog. And while Alaska, Hawaii, Iowa, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, Vermont and Wyoming all could make the same claim, we could have first-mover advantage if we act promptly.

The EPA report also introduced tougher standards on the amount of ozone, or smog, that is allowed in the air. The new standard forces states to have no more than 75 parts per billion, down from 80. Environmental groups were hoping for an even lower 60 to 70 parts per billion standard to help those suffering from respiratory illnesses. That argument likely will continue.

For now, Kansas can be proud of its clean air. We're already in compliance with the tougher standard. While the 40 other states will be spending billions of dollars to reduce smog in their airspace, the Sunflower State could be spending mere thousands to market its already healthy status.

"We've got clean air" is a slogan we can live with.

Editorial by Patrick Lowry

plowry@dailynews.net