State of the Air 2009

 

Note -- the map above denotes the worst grade received in each county for ozone, 24hour PM or annual PM.


Read the Press Release.  View the complete New York State Report.


Where are the air quality monitors located?
Click here for the EPA's ozone and PM monitor locations.  Click here to create a map of air polluntant monitor locations.  

What do colored air quality days mean?
The colors represent the quality of air, based on the Air Quality Index (AQI).  The AQI is an index for reporting daily air quality, and tells you how clean or polluted your air is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for you. Click here for more information on the colors and what they mean.


Map definitions

Ozone and 24hour PM Grading System
Weighted average is derived by adding the three years (2005-2007) of individual level data based on the Air Quality Index, multiplying the sums of each level by the assigned standard weights, i.e. 1=orange, 1.5=red, 2.0=purple and calculating the average.

Grade

Weighted Average

Approximate Number of Allowable Orange/Red/Purple days

A

0.0

None

B

0.3 to 0.9

1 to 2 orange days with no red

C

1.0 to 2.0

3 to 6 days over the standard: 3 to 5 orange with no more than 1 red OR 6 orange with no red

D

2.1 to 3.2

7 to 9 days over the standard: 7 total (including up to 2 red) to 9 orange with no red

F

3.3 or higher

 9 days or more over the standard: 10 orange days or 9 total including at least 1 or more red, purple or maroon

Asterisk
(*) 

 Indicates incomplete monitoring data for all three years. Therefore, those counties are excluded from the grade analysis or received an Incomplete.

Dash
(-)

 Indicates that data on that particular pollutant is not collected in that county.
Grades for annual particle pollution
Based on the county’s design value. If the design value is 15. 1 or higher, the county gets a failing grade (Fail). If the design value is 15 or lower, the county gets a passing grade (Pass). The design value is the calculated concentration of a pollutant based on the form of the National Ambient Air Quality Standard, and is used by EPA to determine whether the air quality in a county meets the standard.