Breathing Clean Air in Yakima? No Way Says The Lung Association
Take a big breath of Yakima air. It's not as clean as you would hope. In fact the
The American Lung Association’s 24th annual “State of the Air” report says despite decades of progress in cleaning air, Washingtonians still face challenges with poor air quality. The report says particle pollution is the biggest barrier to clean air in the valley "largely due to wildfires and woodsmoke."
POOR AIR QUALITY CAN IMPACT HEALTH IN WASHINGTON STATE
“We have made real progress in Washington, but there is much more work to be done to ensure everyone in our state has clean, healthy air to breathe,” says Carrie Nyssen, Senior Director of Advocacy for the American Lung Association. “Even one poor air quality day is one too many for children, older adults, people with chronic illnesses and other vulnerable populations including lower-income residents, and people of color. Policymakers at the local, state and federal levels must act to ensure that we all have clean air to breathe and no community is left behind.”
YAKIMA TOPS THE LIST OF UNHEALTHY AIR
Yakima and Spokane appear on the Top 25 most polluted for short-term particle pollution while Bellingham and Seattle fell out of the top 25. Yakima ranked #11 most polluted for short-term particle pollution and had its highest number of unhealthy particle pollution days in this year’s report. The city also ranked #11 most polluted for year-round particles. Data is not collected for ozone pollution.
YAKIMA ISN'T ALONE ON THE TOP OF THE LIST
Spokane ranked #14 most polluted for short-term particle pollution and also had the highest number of unhealthy days recorded. The data was incomplete to provide a ranking for year-round particles. The city ranked #75 for ozone pollution maintaining its C grade from last year’s report.
CLEANER AIR ON THE WESTSIDE OF THE STATE?
Seattle-Tacoma ranked #28 most polluted for short-term particle pollution registering fewer days than the previous report and also improved for year-round particles (ranked #84). The ranking for ozone also improved (ranked #58). Bellingham was named one of the cleanest cities for ozone pollution and for year-round particle pollution. The city is ranked #34 most polluted for short-term particle pollution (better ranking and fewer days than the previous report.