Air quality dives in New York again, state to issue mobile alerts for unhealthy conditions

Alex Gault, Watertown Daily Times, N.Y.
·2 min read

Jun. 28—Smoke from the ongoing wildfires in Canada is again negatively impacting air quality for New Yorkers, prompting another health advisory from the state government.

On Wednesday, Gov. Kathleen C. Hochul announced that every region of the state is under a health advisory, with conditions in eastern Lake Ontario, western and central New York marked as unhealthy for all residents.

Mid-afternoon Wednesday, Rochester and its suburbs were reporting an air quality index score of 134, unhealthy for sensitive groups, while Oswego was reporting an AQI of 84, moderate. Watertown's AQI was 110 around 4 p.m. Wednesday. Typically the AQI for all of New York hovers between 20 to 50, with urban areas only slightly less clear than rural.

A swath of smoke stretched from Minnesota to North Carolina on Wednesday, with the worst concentration of smoke and particulate matter hitting Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Air quality in New England and New York's eastern side is expected to deteriorate overnight into Thursday as the smoke pushes eastward and south.

"With smoke from the Canadian wildfires once again impacting air quality throughout our state this week, we're urging New Yorkers to remain vigilant," Gov. Hochul said in an announcement Wednesday.

She also announced that the wireless emergency alert system, used to deliver emergency alerts about severe weather events, AMBER alerts and national defense warning, will for the first time be used by state officials to warn residents of poor air quality. When the air quality index of a region exceeds 200 for more than an hour, all cellphones connected to cell towers in that region will receive an alert warning them of the poor air quality.

Additionally, regional transportation authorities and state properties are being asked to provide air quality information on their digital signage and public-facing displays like bus headway signs, building signs, public address systems and online social media. The state will also distribute N95 respirator masks at central locations downstate, and provide allocations to upstate counties for distribution.