Air Quality Hits 'Unhealthy' Level In Bergen County

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — In the Northeast Urban and Northern Central regions of New Jersey on Thursday night and Friday morning, the air quality levels reached above 150, heading into the "Unhealthy" zone.

(Prior reporting: Here Are Your Neighbors' Photos Of The Sepia Smog In North Jersey)

The state had issued an Air Quality Action day for Particulate Matter for Thursday, something they haven't done since the first week in June.

The state issues such a day when the levels of fine particles in the air could cause problems for "sensitive groups" such as children, the elderly, and people with lung issues.

Experts have not said that Thursday's air quality level will rise to the level of Wednesday, June 7, when skies turned yellow in New Jersey. But the levels will reach Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups status.

Only a few towns have issued individual advisories about the smoke. In Essex County, the town of Maplewood noted that N95 and KN95 masks could help protect against particulates, and said recreation activities are not canceled as of now.

The state recommended checking these links for the most up to date information, including a map with the local conditions:

• For the air quality now and the forecast for the next day, go to AirNow.
• For maps showing the quality in different parts of the state, go here https://www.nj.gov/dep/airmon/
• To see if it's best to avoid testing your emergency generators, go here: http://www.nj.gov/dep/aqpp/aqf...

The DEP released this information about Thursday:

An Air Quality Action day for Particulate Matter (PM2.5) has been declared for Thursday, June 29th. Sensitive individuals, including those with heart or lung disease, the elderly, and the young should limit strenuous activities and the amount of time active outdoors.

Levels of fine particulates will rise into the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (USG) category statewide with highest concentrations occurring in western New Jersey due to wildfire smoke transport from eastern Canadian wildfires.

Ozone levels are expected to rise into the moderate category as aging wildfire smoke, sunny skies, and transport of emissions from upwind states will result in favorable conditions for ozone.

The Wildfires

Various wildfires have burned over 19 million acres of Canada since the start of the year, around a third of them in Quebec, according to Accuweather. As of this week, Canada's wildfire season had set a record, with the smoke reaching Europe.

Those who work full-time with earth science and data have said that pollutants that cause climate change are responsible for the never-before-seen effects of the fires, but that there are easy solutions to make the air healthier to breathe.