Air Quality Index

Ashly Naysha Soto Vargas

Pd. 7
Mrs. I. Sierra
Env. Science
 Air Quality
Air Quality
State/ City May 4, 2010 May 5, 2010
Birmingham AL 63 72
Apache Junction AZ 42 33
Little Rock-North Little 32 47
Rock AR
Auburn CA 21 15
Colorado Springs, CO 34 31
Bridgeport, CT 22 28
Northern Delaware, DE 47 20
Washington, DC 46
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 5 3
Aiken-Agusta- SC/GA 28 30
Hilo, HI 17 15
Boise, Idaho 19 18
Chicago, IL 28 27
Evansville, IN 11 9
Des Moines, IA 13 14
Wichita, KS 44 47
Lexington, KY 21 20
Baton Rouge Area, LA 36 39
Acadia National Park, ME 13 12
Baltimore, MD 45 44
Adams – Mt. Greylock, MA 27 29
Ann Arbor, MI 26 23
Minneapolis- St. Paul, MN 22 21
Mississippi Gulf Coast, MS 47 59
Kansas City, MO 28 33
Yellowstone National Park, 11 5
MT
Omaha, Nebraska 15 13
Las Vegas, Nevada 24 29
Concord, New Hampshire 21 19
Brigantine, New Jersey 30 33
Albuquerque, New Mexico 15 13
Albany, New York 26 30
Asheville Ridge Tops, 41 44
North Carolina
Theodore Roosevelt 31 28
National Park, North
Dakota
Cincinnati, Ohio 41 45
 Lawton, Oklahoma 20 17
City of La Grande, Oregon 15 12
Lehigh Valley, 48 52
Pennsylvania
Narragansett, Rhode Island 28 25
Aiken-Augusta –SC/GA, 27 30
South Carolina
Chattanooga, Tennessee 46 43
Austin, Texas 19 18
Logan, Utah 14 17
Bennington, Vermont 20 22
Hampton Roads, Virginia 35 37
Aberdeen, Washington 10 9
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin 37 38
Yellowstone National Park, 11 5
Wyoming
Puerto Rico 22 26
 Air Quality Index

The AQI is an index for reporting daily air quality. It tells you how clean or polluted your
air is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for you. The AQI focuses on
health effects you may experience within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air.
EPA calculates the AQI for five major air pollutants regulated by the Clean Air Act:
ground-level ozone, particle pollution (also known as particulate matter), carbon
monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. For each of these pollutants, EPA has
established national air quality standards to protect public health.Ground-level ozone and
airborne particles are the two pollutants that pose the greatest threat to human health in
this country.

To make it easier to understand, the AQI is divided into six categories:

Air Quality
Levels of Health
Index Colors
Concern
(AQI) Values)

When the AQIis ...air quality ..as symbolized

in this range: conditions are: by this color:

0-50 Good Green

51-100 Moderate Yellow

Unhealthy for
101-150 Orange
Sensitive Groups

151 to 200 Unhealthy Red

201 to 300 Very Unhealthy Purple

301 to 500 Hazardous Maroon

Each category corresponds to a different level of health concern. The six levels of health
concern and what they mean are:

 "Good" AQI is 0 - 50. Air quality is considered satisfactory, and air pollution
poses little or no risk.
 "Moderate" AQI is 51 - 100. Air quality is acceptable; however, for some
pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of
 people. For example, people who are unusually sensitive to ozone may experience
respiratory symptoms.
 "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" AQI is 101 - 150. Although general public is
not likely to be affected at this AQI range, people with lung disease, older adults
and children are at a greater risk from exposure to ozone, whereas persons with
heart and lung disease, older adults and children are at greater risk from the
presence of particles in the air. .
 "Unhealthy" AQI is 151 - 200. Everyone may begin to experience some adverse
health effects, and members of the sensitive groups may experience more serious
effects. .
 "Very Unhealthy" AQI is 201 - 300. This would trigger a health alert signifying
that everyone may experience more serious health effects.
 "Hazardous" AQI greater than 300. This would trigger a health warnings of
emergency conditions. The entire population is more likely to be affected.