Poor air quality today. What you should know about it.
People on the beach in Long Beach near National Boulevard on Friday morning. An air quality alert was issued Friday by the National Weather Service and the Department of Environmental Conservation. Credit: Howard Schnapp
Since earlier in the week, smoke plumes from Canadian wildfires blazing hundreds of miles away in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and other areas have been making their way down to northern U.S. states — including to the metropolitan area. That’s leading to unusually poor air quality locally. Here are questions and answers about what we're breathing.
What’s happening in the wildfires?
Thousands of people have had to leave their homes, and the fires so far have destroyed more than 25,000 acres of land — the region’s worst-ever wildfire season. The Atlantic part of Canada got low snowfall this past winter, and has had a dry spring. It was also unusually hot in May. Human activity is believed to be the cause of most of the wildfires.
What does the National Weather Service say?
Earlier in the week, the weather service in New York issued a tweet: “A plume of Canadian wildfire smoke is forecast to drift over the area Tuesday and could lead to decreased air quality.”
And Friday, NWS relayed an air quality health advisory from the state Department of Environmental Conservation covering the city, Long Island, Rockland and Westchester, cautioning of pollutants in the air. Weather service meteorologist Dominic Ramunni says the smoke has been visible on satellite imagery for some time. “You can see the plume of smoke on our satellites and then it moves with the wind,” he said.
What else is contributing to the poor air quality besides the smoke coming from elsewhere?
“Summer heat can lead to the formation of ground-level ozone, a major component of photochemical smog. Automobile exhaust and out-of-state emissions are the primary sources of ground-level ozone and are the most serious air pollution problems in the northeast,” the alert says.
Who is impacted when the air quality is bad?
“People who may be especially sensitive to the effects of elevated levels of pollutants include the very young, and those with preexisting respiratory problems such as asthma or heart disease,” the weather service warns. Those at risk should talk to their doctors or consider staying indoors.
When will the air quality improve?
The state’s alert was expected to continue until 11 p.m. Friday.
Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.
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