Processed on 2024-03-04 13:06:41 PST.


Disclaimer: Data presented here come from a variety of sources and do not represent official EPA measurements. Please visit AirNow for official measurements.


Cumulative exposure to smoke is an important public health metric. This report summarizes the cumulative number of days air quality monitors in Illinois spent in each AQI category during the the month of September.

The tables below include only permanent monitors measuring PM2.5 and show cumulative exposure under existing NAAQS (National Ambient Air Quality Standards) and under the 2024 revised standards for PM2.5.

In the tables and plots below, ‘Old’ designates cumulative days calculated using the 2023 PM2.5 NAAQS while ‘New’ is calculated using the 2024 revised PM2.5 NAAQS. The impact of the NAAQS revision is quite clear.

September in Illinois

September 2014 – 11 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 219 90 0 0 0 0 32
New 137 172 0 0 0 0 32

September 2015 – 12 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 192 139 0 0 0 0 41
New 109 222 0 0 0 0 41

September 2016 – 26 permanent monitors

Processing error: Unable to calculate tables.

September 2017 – 21 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 283 102 0 0 0 0 80
New 190 195 0 0 0 0 80

September 2018 – 40 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 1 0 0 0 0 0 30
New 1 0 0 0 0 0 30

September 2019 – 23 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 415 123 0 0 0 0 82
New 265 273 0 0 0 0 82

September 2020 – 43 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 47 13 0 0 0 0 2
New 32 28 0 0 0 0 2

September 2021 – 23 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 578 83 0 0 0 0 52
New 413 248 0 0 0 0 52

September 2022 – 24 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 627 39 0 0 0 0 47
New 467 199 0 0 0 0 47

September 2023 – 26 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 566 140 0 0 0 0 38
New 348 358 0 0 0 0 38