Air Quality Alert for Chicago

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has issued an Air Pollution Action Day for the Chicago area today, Sept. 14, according to AIRNow.gov.

This alert has been issued as a result of . Affected areas include Cook, DuPage, Grundy, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties in Illinois. This is the fifth Air Pollution Action Day for 2011.

This is an orange level alert, which means the air may be unhealthy for sensitive groups.

"Active children and adults, people with respiratory disease, such as asthma, should avoid prolonged outdoor exertion. Everyone else, especially children, should limit prolonged outdoor exertion," according to the National Weather Service.

For more information visit the National Weather Service.