Currently our AQI is a mere 87, for fine particulates (PM 2.5). That’s a relief. Just a normal amount of air pollution.
Or is it? I’ve kind of lost track of what was normal for my area. It’s not like I paid attention to the AQI for most of the past decade.
So here, for Fairfax County, VA, I’m posting a table of AQI statistics, for PM 2.5. based on the period 2010-2022. Just so that I can refer to it as needed. Briefly, only 1% of days exceed the 99th percentile. Half of days exceed the 50th percentile. And so on.
Source: Analysis of data from the U.S. EPA.
From this, I conclude that the current level of fine particulates in the air is still far from normal. The current AQI of 87, for a July day, in my area, is just under the 99th percentile of all July days 2010-2022 (which, per the table, would be an AQI score of 92).
Eyeballing it, we might have had a July day like this once every two or three years, in the period leading up to 2023.
So, not unheard-of. But still far from what we (used to) consider typical, in my locality.
