Smoke continues to hover overhead and the previous forecast still holds. As explained there the temperature inversion is still keeping the smoke at bay. We've hardly seen air quality deteriorating beyond Moderate anywhere in the state, or further upwind in Oregon for that matter.
There is fog in the Puget Sound lowlands and this will recur each morning through Sunday. Fog should not be confused with smoke. Here's an illustration of what's what as seen from above, but only an air quality monitor can distinguish between the two at ground level.
Things will stay that way and start to "improve" by Saturday night as a slight wind shift s-l-o-w-l-y disconnects us from the CA smoke late in the weekend. Models are persisting with the inversion in western WA so any residual smoke aloft wont mix down all that much. But inversions also lock in our own local emissions at the surface. Overall, we can expect:
- Good to Moderate air in much of the state
- Moderate or areas of Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups in the higher terrain of the Olympics and Cascades (hard to pin down what elevation the transition occurs).
- Saturday's sunset may not be as colorful
BTW the air quality monitoring data map at the top of this blog has been upgraded to show both the new EPA Fire/ Smoke map that incorporates corrected low-cost sensor data, and our 2-day PM2.5 forecast. Might take a moment to load. If you're using a mobile device, scroll to the bottom of this page and click "View web version" to see this.
First off, I stay tuned to your updates as they are the most accurate for our needs. Thank you!!!
ReplyDeleteMy severely asthmatic kiddo went for a walk last evening and had a headache, lethargy and needed her nebulizer. While the air monitor said moderate, she felt stifled. Could we be getting unhealthy air in Everett? And if so, for how long?
Hello, sorry about your daughter's condition. None of the monitors anywhere near Everett (or further afield for that matter) recorded anything worse than Moderate in the last 3 days, and we're not expecting it to get worse than that either. Was she exposed to a very localized source? Wood smoke? If she is very sensitive then it is advisable for her to take precautions as if the air quality is at least one category worse than the measured level.
DeleteI also have lung conditions and I could hardly move yesterday and had a terrible headache. It effects some of us differently/very strongly.
DeleteI hope your daughter is doing better after nebulizer treatment. I have pretty sensitive asthma as an adult and since living through the intense
Deletesmoke a few summers ago, my
asthma gets triggered from moderate air quality (doesn’t have to be red/‘unhealthy’). I check Purple Air website daily to help limit/avoid outdoor time during moderate/‘yellow’ air quality throughout the year, not just in summer. (and if I have to be outside in moderate air, I wear an air pollution mask such as Respro or Vog brand mask with replaceable charcoal filters. Everyone is unique. For my situation, wearing a mask or avoiding outdoors during moderate air quality has really helped reduce my asthma symptoms & severity. And I keep my rescue inhaler & nebulizer ready. Hope this helps.
Another adult sharing that I react to moderate. I don't seem to have asthma. I have allergies that seem to get triggered by wildfire smoke with scary symptoms, and get mood swings and confusion from just moderate smoke. I've been pre-medicating with Claritin to get through the days, since once I get sick I really can only use Benadryl and it doubles as a sleep medication.
DeleteThanks for these updates! Do you have any forecast for the Olympics/the coast more specifically?
ReplyDeleteNothing that wasnt already mentioned above. Prepare for USG if hiking at higher elevations, through Sunday
Deleteyes, we were hiking up toward Deer Lake in N Olympics on Wednesday and the higher we got the smokier it got. Driving back, going past Port Angeles you could clearly see the inversion level - smoky above, clearer below.
Delete--Jennifer
Hi. Your AQI's remain confusing. Today 201001@1328 you list AQ in Belligham as green good. Your blog tracks PM 2.5 You say it is based on AirNow readings. But AirNow lists it as moderate for the same period The Air Now "dial" is also confusing. It lists as moderate, but under that shows a green button for "good" Below the dial (yellow) but above the green button it says PM 2.5. So which does the 2.5 apply to ? the green or the yellow. Clicking further I come to "home page" listing PM 2.5 as yellow moderate (55) and ozone green (6). This is all completely contradictory. Thanks, Mark
ReplyDeleteHello, yes I see what you mean on the AirNow site and agree it contradicts itself. Best I can tell, AirNow is still stuck on a 1-hr old data point that might have been revised down to Good due to some in-line QC issue but the AirNow dial didnt update. The map above is correct, though.
DeleteIt it pretty much the same forecast for Eastern Washington, with smoke overhead, inversion, green to moderate at ground level? That's pretty much what we're seeing - you can just really see the smoke and haze and I think people are a little wary after early September. Thanks for the updates. Robin Priddy (BCAA)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the update! Unless extra sensitive, still can keep the windows open, yes?
ReplyDeleteYes
DeleteI live in Stanwood. I'm 40 yrs old and have asthma. Right now it smells like burning rubber around here yet the forecast says moderate.
ReplyDeleteI've been to hospital twice and need my nebulizer multiple times a day since the smoke started.
Why does the map say moderate or good while I'm struggling to breathe? And I'm expected to work while I'm gasping for breath. It would help employers to be more sensitive (and doctors too) if you guys would really make a firm denouncement of anyone working a job that exposes them to to the smoke and expects them to be active.
And also encouraging doctors to issue doctor's notes supporting that too. I love my job but not at the expense of my health.
Thank you.
The forecast represents regional ambient air quality. If you are or were smelling burnt rubber, it's possible someone in your area was burning something they shouldn't. If that's the case, it's also possible the air quality near you was worse than what monitors indicated. The inversion that has been keeping the CA wildfire smoke from mixing down to the surface is also allowing locally generated pollution to build up. Many counties have lifted their summer fire safety burn bans this week, so we are also seeing a lot more outdoor burning in rural areas. The protective health guidelines Ecology and local air agencies provide with respect to the different air quality categories are statistically based on the reaction of large numbers of people to different pollution levels. As an individual you may be far more sensitive. It's best to contact your doctor for advice on protecting your personal health.
DeleteWas wondering, might we see more smoke coming in next week?
ReplyDeleteNot likely
DeleteHi there,
ReplyDeleteI was wondering if the smoke is still hovering aloft and if it will still impact air quality at higher elevations (2k-5k feet) at unhealthy levels tomorrow and Sunday? Trying to plan for a 5 hour hike with a toddler who is in the sensitive group due to her age. Thank you and have a good weekend :)
More like USG (orange) on Saturday at higher elevations, mostly Good to Moderate on Sunday.
Deletehello. love this site. map doesnt work on my phone. you say "If you're using a mobile device, scroll to the bottom of this page and click "View web version" to see this." i have tried a dozen times to find this. it is not there on phone or desktop. searched page for "web" and found only the above line. please advise
ReplyDeleteDWP that's odd. A mobile device should automatically go to https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/?m=1 and you will see the "View web version" below. Desktop version would go to the full version by default and display the map straight away. Try it from a different computer and see. Perhaps your security settings (need to allow all cookies?) are getting in the way?
Deletehi and thanks. if i go to https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/?m=1 as you say i do get to see the view web version link. so that helps. but the url for that link is https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/?m=0 which takes me back where i started with no map loading on my phong. so that doesnt help. what is the right url? thanks
DeleteSo it seems like your phone's security settings are preventing the map from loading properly. The m=1 URL is the default view that mobile devices load (no map by default), and the other is identical to https://wasmoke.blogspot.com, which includes the map and is the same as what a desktop PC would load.
DeleteI just tried this on 3 different windows based browsers, iOS and Android devices and it worked fine. Like I said earlier, why not try a different browser or device and make sure cookies arent being restricted?
First of all, my continued thanks to all that are involved with this site. Your updates are essential the details highly appreciated.
ReplyDeleteMy question is why does the "Lake Forest Park-Town Center" (monitor id: 530330024_01) show 108 (USG) on WAQA map and 72 (moderate) on the Air Now Fire and Smoke map?
I apologize if this has been answered before. I remember there being something about the difference between WAQA vs AQI? Having trouble finding that comment.
Yes thats down to WAQA vs AQI differences. The post on the topic is at https://wasmoke.blogspot.com/2020/09/understanding-your-air-quality-numbers.html
DeleteThanks, Ranil.
ReplyDeleteA follow up question about that same sensor. Everything around it on the WAQA site does not seem to be close to it's level. Right now it's reading 114. Is it just higher off the ground? Or is it that pollution is pooling there? Or maybe locals are burning something close by? Closest reading to it within 8* miles is 63 so it seems odd.
Another question I've had is, with such high moisture in the air like today does it make fine particles "more dangerous"? I think I remember reading somewhere that the fine particles are attracted to moisture so wondering if you just end up breathing more of it in?
First question is answered along with the next one below. As for the moisture effects on particles, it does cause particles to swell in size, but they will most likely remain within the size range that is inhalable anyway (< 2.5µm in diameter). So that alone wont add to the toxicity since the extra mass you're inhaling is in fact water. However, depending on the chemical composition of particles, the presence of moisture could trigger certain reactions on the surface of the particles. This MAY end up making it a little more toxic. Fine particle monitors (not the low cost sensors) all have heated inlets to remove the effect of moisture.
DeleteAnother question too I forgot to ask :) How often are permanent sensors placed and how useful are they to show variation per mile? For example that Lake forest park one is showing quite a different picture than the sensors just a few miles south. Then looking at that huge gap between "Lake forest park town-center" and "Marysville-7th Ave" permanent sensors, it feels there could be a need for more of them? There are a few low cost sensors sprinkled along the way to "Marysville-7th Ave", but with the reliability disclaimer that is shown when viewing them (on fire and smoke map) it makes me wonder how useful their readings actually are. Are the low cost sensors the way to go or is there definitely a need for more permanent sensors and if so how do we get more of them? I am also wondering on their placement. I assume that had to be strategic? For example, in Seattle there is a high concentration of permanent sensors and then north there are none for miles. Curious the reasoning if you happen to know. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteLFP vs Marysville: its down to differences in the type of monitor used at each site. A correlated nephelometer is operated at LFP while a Beta Attenuation Monitor (regulatory grade sampler) is run at Marysville. The latter cranks out a more accurate reading while neph data have to be converted to mass concentrations using a predetermined formula (we call this a "neph correlation"). Neph correlations are in turn determined from historical experiments conducted over wider areas and try to account for the full range of physical and chemical characteristics of particles that impact at a series of sites. In reality these correlations work best during wood smoke pollution events. Aged wildfire smoke can be a bit different in chemical and physical composition, so the correlations can be subject to more uncertainty.
DeleteHowever a separate neph is also operated at Marysville and I compared the raw neph data from the two sites. Much closer than the Marysville BAM vs LFP Neph that you described. But yes, LFP did run a little higher from about 9AM- 6PM last Friday, after which Marysville remained higher, so it could be down to legitimate differences in localized emissions.
As for placement of monitors, first, these sites are both handled by the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency. Obviously PSCAA (or anyone else for that matter) cant install monitors everywhere and a judgement call must be made on the placement of finite resources. Considerations that usually go into these include the known presence of polluting sources, unique meteorological patterns causing pollution to selectively pool in one area (valley communities, for instance), persistent public complaints, population density and related demographic factors, to name a few. Here's the latest assessment of the adequacy of our entire monitoring network in WA: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/publications/documents/2002016.pdf.
Low cost sensors, with all their caveats are still useful to identify areas of persistent problems, not just where there are short term differences of a few µg/m³. There are many legitimate reasons for air quality to vary spatially.
Also, the polygons shown on the map above were drawn by assessing spatial gradients between monitors (https://enviwa.ecology.wa.gov/Documents/SmokeForecast.pdf for more details, in particular, Figure B.1). For your area the polygons are large because it is what PSCAA uses to communicate burn ban info.
Hope I havent rambled too much!
I just want to tell you how much I admire your helpful and informative blog. Exactly what is needed on days/seasons like this. Thank you so much for putting in the time, for the quality, for the responsiveness! FIVE STARS
ReplyDeleteHi Ranil,
ReplyDeleteWe are considering an ascent of Mt constance (high east olympics zone) on the 5-6th. Are unsafe conditions expected to liger in subalpine and alpine zones with current predictions? For context, I have severe asthma.
Thank you for all your tremendous work!
Hi, No indication that smoke is lingering at the higher elevations of the Olympics. Wind flows have mostly pushed the smoke east of the Cascades. Northerly flow today & tomorrow will prevent any fresh infusions of CA wildfire smoke here. Enjoy your hike!
DeleteIs there anything in the forecast for when the inversion layer will be gone? The AQI is hovering in the barely-green range now, but my girlfriend who is severely asthmatic is still bothered by all the trapped-in pollution from the inversion layer.
ReplyDeleteIts weakening but there is almost no wildfire smoke trapped within it anymore. Its all localized emissions (traffic, industry, wood smoke etc) that remain within it. Expect the inversion to go away by Thursday night and a wet and windy weekend to follow. Hope she feels better soon.
DeleteI just stopped by to look for an update, too. I mistook where the air purifier was yesterday and want productive at work as a result.
DeleteHello! I was wondering do we know why in South Seatte/Burien area why isn’t been moderate? Is that from “local pollution” vs smoke? I was excited as I thought this week would be good. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHi, yes, local stuff. Wildfire smoke is gone but the inversion persists, trapping our own emissions in a shallow layer. Wood smoke is probably part of the mix
DeleteThank you for posting this important information. Just one complaint. The colors for 'Good' and 'Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups' are indistinguishable for me. Perhaps a blue dot for 'Good' would be better.
ReplyDeleteHello, unfortunately all air quality categories are linked to EPA's long-established color scheme at https://www.airnow.gov/aqi/aqi-basics/. The forecast map above has a popup that spells out the category, to help with accessibility.
DeleteAm I seeing even more smoke in the Kent/SeaTac area
ReplyDeleteA tiny bit of CA smoke drifting over us again but mostly the local emissions trapped close to the ground. Will be gone by Friday
Delete