The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has declared a Code Orange air quality alert for today in the Lehigh Valley-Berks Area, including Berks, Lehigh and Northampton counties.

Also under Code Orange is the Susquehanna Valley Area, which includes the counties of Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon and York.

Partly to mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the lower 90s will act to produce maximum ozone concentrations that will likely contribute to 8-hour average concentrations of ozone in the Code Orange range today. Residents are encouraged to check www.airnow.gov for current conditions in their area.

On a Code Orange alert day, young children, the elderly, and those with respiratory problems, such as asthma, emphysema, and bronchitis, are especially vulnerable to the effects of air pollution and should limit outdoor activities.

Residents and businesses within the Air Quality Action Day areas are strongly encouraged to voluntarily help reduce ozone air pollution by:

• Driving less by carpooling or using public transportation;

• Combining errands to reduce vehicle trips;

• Limiting engine idling;

• Refueling cars and trucks after dusk; and

• Conserving electricity by setting air conditioning to a higher temperature and turning off lights that are not in use.