Interactive report

Get a close look at the Valley's air-quality problem with audio, video, animations, and an interactive quiz and game. You also can check the smog-test results of any California vehicle or light truck.

Listen to Bee staff

In a podcast, the reporters on the "Fighting for Air" special section discuss the pollution challenge facing the Valley.

Stories

Escaping smog

These families and people have left the Valley, blaming health problems caused by air pollution.

Graphics

ESCAPING SMOG: The Whipple family

Background: Nancy Whipple, 57, was a drug and alcohol counselor but took a sabbatical to work with children. Her husband, Doug, 55, had become a senior field representative for the local carpenter's union.

Why they left: Nancy was tired of taking medicine every day to breathe deeply. And Doug worried about his wife's health. She almost died six years ago when she had pneumonia in both lungs. A trip to the Idaho panhandle three years ago convinced the couple that Nancy would breathe easier if they left Fresno.

Now: Doug retired in July. This summer, they moved to St. Maries, Idaho, southeast of Spokane. After just a two-week trip to her new home, Nancy said: "My sinuses were clear. I didn't need to use my medicine. I just felt good."