Bellingham’s air gets a failing grade again. The reason? You guessed it

Robert Mittendorf
·2 min read
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Smoke from wildfires in Washington state and elsewhere earned Bellingham and Whatcom County a failing mark for 24-hour particle pollution in an annual nationwide report on air pollution, and weather forecasters say this could be another smoke-filled summer in the Northwest.

Bellingham tied for first place with five other U.S. cities, including Missoula, Mont., for having the least amount of ozone pollution. But it dropped off the list of cleanest cities in part because of an “F” grade for 24-hour particle pollution and incomplete data for annual particle pollution in the American Lung Association’s “State of the Air” report.

Bellingham had eight days in the three-year period where particle pollution was dangerous to everyone, according to the report.

This year’s survey used air-quality readings from more than 200 U.S. cities over the years 2020-2022. In September and October 2022, Bellingham and the Northwest had some of the world’s worst air.

“Our area has experienced smoke events in recent summers. Smoke has impacted all Washington’s counties, some more than others, and caused poor scores for daily averages,” said Mark Buford, executive director of the Northwest Clean Air Agency.

“We already believe this could be an intense wildfire season — drought conditions are being seen all over the state, including here in Northwest Washington. And we saw wildfires start in Skagit and Whatcom counties last weekend,” Buford said in an emailed statement.

In a forecast issued Wednesday, the AccuWeather service predicted a below-average wildfire season with strong fire activity across Canada.

The National Weather Service’s three-month outlook for May-June-July calls for warmer than normal conditions with less than average rain across the Northwest.

Prevailing west winds through most of the summer keep Whatcom County and the rest of the Northwest cooler on average. Those west winds also keep much of the wildfire smoke from California, Oregon and British Columbia from blowing our way.

But high pressure systems can cause a change in the wind direction, which brings unseasonable warmth and wildfire smoke.

“Conditions will gradually become more conducive for fires by midsummer in the Northwest and northern Rockies. Wildfire season in these regions will begin to kick into gear in July and persist into early autumn,” AccuWeather said.