Because of all the forest fire smoke in the air, people are talking about and monitoring the air quality. The problem is that it seems that every website you go to has a different measuring system and the more you learn about air quality the more confusing it gets.
Environment Canada invented something they call the one to ten air quality scale. I really don’t like it because it seems to downplay the significance of air quality on people’s health. One to three is considered low, four to six is moderate and seven to ten is high. Some sites will add 10+ if conditions are really bad. They get the number by a complicated formula taking into consideration particulate matter under 2.5 microns, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and ozone. Just so you know a micron is one millionth of a meter or one thousandth of a millimetre. So, these are very small particles you can breathe into your lungs and often get lodged there reducing your lungs capacity.
Other sites like the Windy app, aqicn.org and Purplesky rate things from zero into the hundreds and have colour-coded maps. They rate things on levels as being good, moderate, unhealthy (for some), unhealthy (for all), very unhealthy and hazardous. I think they should add the categories very hazardous, extremely hazardous and say goodbye. Why? Because air pollution can kill people and it is estimated that over six million people die every year because of it, either directly or as a contributing factor, especially when combined with high temperatures, age, or poor health.
Knowing the local air quality is a first step but getting people and the government to take it seriously is a whole different matter. During the last week of very poor air quality, I saw people outside jogging while others were playing tennis and baseball. Kids were out running around playing and adults were walking or biking around. Hardly anyone was wearing a face mask and yet the conditions were very unhealthy and even hazardous. The field house was being used as a safe place to go walking and yet I heard it was almost as smoky inside as outside. So maybe the government should stick an air quality monitor in there to see what its pollution level was. They should also have digital signs around town telling people what the air quality is.
Think about the room you are sitting in, which contains a sample of our atmosphere. It is 78.08 % nitrogen. So, most of what you breathe in and out is nitrogen. Then it is 20.95 % oxygen, and you need that to survive. So you breathe in 20.95% oxygen and you breathe out 16% oxygen and around 4% carbon dioxide which is why in an airtight room or submersible you can run out of air. Luckily plants take in carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. The rest of the atmosphere is a collection of gases. Now pump in forest fire smoke.
You can still breathe but it is like chain smoking cigarettes, your lungs are gathering tiny little particles which put a strain on your lungs and over a long enough period can cause other health problems. So yes, you can walk, jog, bike etc. but over time it will harm you.
Since heat waves and forest fire smoke are part of the planet’s ecosystem and happen most years, we should be set up to deal with them. That means having face masks available for bad periods and having clean and cool indoor air for people to take shelter in. This is something people and the government should plan for and deal with. Buildings should be designed to be warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Often little changes can make a big difference.
There should be cooling off places scattered around town particularly during hot bad smoke years. It’s the humane thing to do. So, stay cool everyone and have a mask to wear during hazardous air quality conditions outside. Your heart and lungs will thank you.
