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4/5/2010 Under a canopy of willow oaks, Shane Nantz kicks up a cloud of pollen as he mows the front yard of his west Charlotte home Monday evening. (TODD SUMLIN - Charlotte Observer)

Monday brought a bad day for breathing as pollen peaked and smog threatened.

Since early March, this year’s oak pollen count has been twice as high as last year, a Charlotte allergist said, and cedar pollen has been even higher. People who are allergic to such wind-blown pollens are suffering.

“It’s just been a tremendous burst of pollen, like a cloud almost,” said Dr. John Klimas of Carolina Asthma and Allergy Center. The practice records pollen concentrations.

Air-quality forecasters, meanwhile, issued the year’s first Code Orange smog alert for the Charlotte region. That level is potentially unhealthy for children with asthma and other people sensitive to smog.

Through 5 p.m., smog levels stayed at Code Yellow levels. They’re expected to stay in that moderate range today.

It all happened as one of the coldest winters in years abruptly leapt into temperatures typical of mid-June. Monday’s temperature hit 87 degrees, 17 degrees higher than normal.

“Three weeks ago I was freezing – then, boom, it was like summer,” warehouse worker Eddie Johnson, 27, said after playing basketball in Freedom Park.

Winter rain and warm springs can both increase pollen amounts, the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology says. The Charlotte area has had both. Windy weather also increases pollen counts as pollens are spread throughout the air, it says.

The oak-pollen count was 109 percent higher through Friday than in the same period last year, Klimas said. Cedar pollen was 169 percent higher. The greenish pine pollen that’s covering cars and sidewalks can irritate eyes but is not an allergen.

Tree pollen afflicts Charlotte allergy sufferers from February through late April. Grass pollen is in the air from late April through June.

The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America ranked Charlotte third last spring on its list of most challenging U.S. cities to live in with allergies.

In addition to itchy eyes, runny noses and sneezing, pollen allergies can induce “presenteeism” – showing up for work but being unable to fully engage. “It really affects the quality of life,” Klimas said.

Charlotte’s pollen will remain at high levels through at least Thursday, a pollen.com ^[2] forecast said.

This story from The Charlotte Observer ^[3] appears on DavidsonNews.net as part of our local news partnership.

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