Why the state's air quality data for Lansing was offline for 2 days
LANSING — Lansing area residents can now see the current air quality information for the region for the first time in at least two days.
The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes & Energy's website reports air quality data for cities across Michigan, but as the department issued "Action Alert" days on Sunday and Monday because of Canadian wildfire smoke, data for the Lansing region was not available.
Michigan has around two dozen air quality monitors that are linked to the AirNow federal system that can give near-live updates on air quality, available at www.airnow.gov/.
Monitors in Jenison and Bay County were listed on Monday afternoon as "ND" or no data, as Lansing's monitor had been. The Lansing monitor began reporting fresh data after noon Monday. It was offline since at least Sunday.
Hugh McDiarmid, a spokesman for EGLE, said in an email there was a communication issue in Lansing which staff resolved, and that air quality monitors can be impacted by network or other communication issues.
He added that data from Port Huron was not available Monday and staff were onsite Monday working to fix it.
McDiarmid said the monitors are regional, and conditions in individual neighborhoods can vary based on topography and other issues, "...so even though you may live in Anytown, MI, your neighborhood air quality may differ – good or bad – from the monitor’s reading."
If there is an air quality alert in the region but state data is not available, he advised people to take the appropriate precautions, or use the AirNow website that shows some data that can be helpful in determining air quality.
In the past month, Canadian wildfire smoke has clogged Michigan's air several times, at times parts of the state had some of the worst air quality in the world.
On Monday afternoon, Lansing's air quality index was 58, which is considered moderate risk. Ann Arbor and the Detroit area were both considered unhealthy for sensitive groups, with AQI scores of 126 and 145, as of 2 p.m. Monday.
Any rating between 101-150 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.
The state's alert covers 47 counties, including Ingham, Clinton, Eaton, Shiawassee and Jackson counties.
A Monday forecast from AirNow anticipates "no real threat of returning wildfire smoke for the foreseeable future. Since smoke models only forecast out a couple of days, we will keep an eye on updated model runs and will make updates to the forecast as needed if any alert-able smoke is looking to impact the state."
There are typically two types of air quality alerts: Ozone and particulate. The wildfire smoke has generally been about particulates in the air, although particulates can increase the risk of ozone alerts, McDiarmid said, such as the first time in Michigan's history when both alerts were issued in June.
The forecast calls for moderate ozone conditions Tuesday and Wednesday and good ozone conditions the rest of the week. No particulate alerts are anticipated in the AirNow forecast.
The forecast says the work week should see increasingly better air. There is a chance for a small increase in particulates in the air on Wednesday but southern wind patterns and anticipated rain Thursday should reduce much of the risk.
Contact Mike Ellis at mellis@lsj.com or 517-267-0415
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Why air quality data for Lansing was offline for two days
