Air Quality

This summer, wildfire smoke has impacted the Pacific Northwest, California, the Mountain West, and the Northeast. The western states experience direct, localized smoke from ongoing blazes whereas the midwestern and eastern cities suffer from unhealthy air because of wind patterns carrying smoke from Canadian wildfires. In July, 13 states issued air quality alerts because of more than 150 wildfires burning in Quebec.

The Clean Air Act, passed in 1970, created programs that lowered the levels of six common pollutants: particulate matter, ozone, lead, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide. As a result, the combined emissions of these six dropped by 78% over the ensuing 50 years even while the U.S. economy continued to grow. In particular, the reduction of smog and fine particulate matter improved public health nationwide.

The Air Quality Index will reach unhealthy levels today from New York City and the Lower Hudson Valley through Central and Western New York. WAMC’s Elias Guerra has more on how people are handling the Canadian wildfire smoke.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said smoke from wildfires in Canada will bring visible smoke and hazy skies throughout the state, with more dangerous conditions in Central and Western New York.

More than 739 fires are burning in Canada, and smoke crossing the border has triggered air quality alerts in several U.S. states.

The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation has issued an air quality alert for Tuesday.

The "State of the Air" across the cities of Albany and Schenectady is "unhealthy." That’s according to new data presented in the American Lung Association's 2025 report.

The New York State Departments of Environmental Conservation and Health are urging residents to take caution this summer as air quality shifts.

New York state has issued an air quality health advisory for Tuesday that includes the Adirondacks and Hudson Valley.The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection has also issued a statewide air quality alert for Tuesday.

The American Lung Association has released its latest State of the Air report, measuring air quality and the impact air pollution has on health.