The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has issued an air quality health advisory for most of New York state, Monday.
The advisory includes all of Western New York and is in place until 11:59 p.m.
According to a DEC press release, the advisory is due to smoke from Canadian wildfires which is causing an increase in "fine particulate matter" in the air.
Although the DEC forecasted air quality in the "unhealthy for sensitive groups" category for Monday, some areas in the region are already experiencing even worse pollution levels.
As of 11:30 a.m. Monday, the air quality in Buffalo, the surrounding suburbs and many of the south towns is in the "unhealthy" category according to air quality monitor website, airnow.gov.
That means that some members of the general public may experience negative health effects while members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects, according to the DEC.
Sensitive groups include children and teens, the elderly, pregnant people, those with lung or heart conditions, asthmatics, those who exercise or work outdoors and those in disadvantaged communities.
Environment Canada and the Province of Ontario have issued a special air quality statement for the City of Toronto, Monday, with smoke also expected to impact much of southern Ontario.
The smoke is "causing or expected to cause poor air quality and reduced visibility" and is forecast to persist into Monday night and "possibly" Tuesday before finally easing, according to Environment Canada.
What steps should I take?
When the AQI is in the "unhealthy" category, people should take the following steps per the DEC:
- Everyone should reduce long or intense outdoor activities.
- Take more breaks.
- Sensitive groups should move activities indoors or reschedule outdoor events for another day.
- If outdoor activity is unavoidable, take frequent breaks and move indoors if symptoms occur (During high-heat air pollution events, seek indoor locations with air conditioning or go to a cooling center).
The "unhealthy" category applies when the air quality index is between 151-200.
You can monitor the current air quality for your zip code at airnow.gov.
What is Air Quality Index (AQI)?
The DEC states the AQI is a scale used for reporting daily air quality. It tells you how clean or polluted your air is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for you. The AQI correlates levels of different pollutants to one scale. The higher the AQI value, the greater the health concern. An Air Quality Health Advisory is issued to alert sensitive groups to take necessary precautions when ozone and/or fine particle levels are expected to exceed an AQI value of 100.
