More than 400 wildfires burning across Canada have triggered air quality alerts across a large portion of the U.S. In New York City, record-setting air pollution bathed the city in an ominous orange haze. Many reported smelling smoke, despite being thousands of miles away from the fires.
Experts at the Columbia Climate School have been featured widely in the news, using their expertise in meteorology, air pollution, health and disaster response to help put this unusual event into context. Below, we share some of their insights and guidance.
How dangerous is it?
“These levels are at least 10 times higher than what health guidelines mark as the healthy levels for exposure for particulate matter,” Dan Westervelt, who studies air pollution at the Climate School’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, told CNN. “So we’re really seeing just unprecedented amounts of pollution in the New York area and the mid-Atlantic in general.”
Read more at: Columbia Climate School
A satellite image captures thick smoke over the eastern U.S. on June 7, 2023. (Photo Credit: NASA)