To say it is a little smoky in Quesnel today would be an understatement.
The Ministry of Environment has not only issued a smoky skies bulletin for the region but the Air Quality Health Index in Quesnel is 10 plus out of 10 or very high.
Donna Haga is an Air Quality Meteorologist.
“The air quality health index is based on the concentration of three different pollutants, nitrogen dioxide, ground level ozone and fine particulate matter. And in BC when we see these intense wildfire smoke episodes, it’s that fine particulate matter that’s really driving the air quality health index into the higher risk categories.”
Haga says the health messaging is for those in the high-risk category, young children, elderly folks, people with pre-existing conditions, to avoid strenuous outdoor activities.
She says the general population should also reduce or reschedule those activities, and should avoid them if they are not feeling well.
“Coughing, sore throat, headache, fatigues. Of course if you are having trouble breathing you should go to the emergency room or call 9-1-1.”
Haga says there is a cumulative effect when these types of conditions exist off and on throughout the summer.
“Certainly there is a cumulative effect and I think what we’re seeing in BC, especially over the past number of years, is we’ve gone from maybe experiencing maybe a couple of short periods of wildfire smoke exposure to in some instances communities are inundated with wildfire smoke for a month at a time or even more. Parts of northeast BC this summer have had very little relief from the smoke.”
Haga says this has led to conversations about updating the air quality health index and some of the messaging at the national level.
“The model that’s currently being used is to reflect this change. The air quality health index is a metric that was developed for urban centers and reflects pollutant mix in an urban center. That is very different from parts of BC where we have pristine air for a lot of the year and then we have very high levels of wildfire smoke during the wildfire season. Accordingly the folks who make those decisions and develop these models, are working hard and thinking about how to update them to reflect this transition we’re seeing.”
The air quality seems to be a bit better in other parts of the Cariboo.
The Air Quality Health Index is at just 3 in Williams Lake, which is low.
Something going on in the Cariboo you think people should know about?
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