Processed on 2024-03-04 14:11:14 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 Virginia spent in each AQI category during the the month of January.

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.

January in Virginia

January 2014 – 7 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 194 18 0 0 0 0 5
New 165 47 0 0 0 0 5

January 2015 – 7 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 195 18 0 0 0 0 4
New 165 48 0 0 0 0 4

January 2016 – 16 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 195 20 0 0 0 0 2
New 173 42 0 0 0 0 2

January 2017 – 9 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 180 5 0 0 0 0 1
New 164 21 0 0 0 0 1

January 2018 – 12 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 176 6 0 0 0 0 4
New 158 24 0 0 0 0 4

January 2019 – 7 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 149 2 0 0 0 0 35
New 136 15 0 0 0 0 35

January 2020 – 14 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 197 14 0 0 0 0 6
New 184 27 0 0 0 0 6

January 2021 – 7 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 193 21 0 0 0 0 3
New 166 48 0 0 0 0 3

January 2022 – 12 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 145 26 0 0 0 0 15
New 108 63 0 0 0 0 15

January 2023 – 26 permanent monitors

Good Moderate USG Unhealthy Very Unhealthy Hazardous Missing
Old 302 32 0 0 0 0 7
New 251 83 0 0 0 0 7