The following figures depict the PM2.5 concentrations from selected air quality monitoring stations across New York State as of 3 pm on July 18, 2023. As a reference, the current air quality standards for PM2.5 are 35 µg/m3 based on the 24-hour average and 12 µg/m3 based on the annual average, respectively. PM2.5 is known to be one of the most harmful air pollutants to human health. Note that the sharp spikes around July 4, 2023 were due to the firework activities.
It is worth noting that the air quality in New York State has been affected by Canadian wildfires for many years. For example, there are well-documented air pollution episodes driven by wildfires in May 2010 (Quebec wildfires), May 2016 (wildfires from Southwestern Canada), August 2018 (wildfires from British Columbia and Pacific Northwest), and July 2021 (wildfires from southern Canada), as illustrated in the figures below. However, what we have seen in 2023 is unprecedented in terms of the magnitudes of the fires and the number of people being affected.
