The West Kootenay has the worst air quality in Canada due to wildfire smoke suffocating the region.
IQAir, which measures air quality throughout the world, rated Trail on Monday at the bottom of Canadian communities with a 288 air quality index score, followed by Nelson in second, then Castlegar at third and Rossland in fourth.
Trail, Nelson and Castlegar’s air is described as very unhealthy by IQAir, which is the second-worst category ranked by the site.
The Regional District of Central Kootenay meanwhile was 10th worst out of 288 Canadian communities. The only city outside B.C. in the top-10 was Sherbrooke, Que., at No. 9.
IQAir rates clean air as a score of zero, with the higher scores corresponding with worsening pollution. Regina, Brooks, Alta., and Chetwynd, B.C., were among the communities Monday with scores of zero.
Several fires in the West Kootenay are contributing to the poor air, with Environment Canada warning Monday that temperatures are forecasted to only get hotter over the next week.
READ MORE:
• $40K in fire suppression equipment stolen from Beasley Fire Department
• Doctors, air pollution experts forecast worsening health effects of wildfire smoke
@tyler_harper | tyler.harper@nelsonstar.com
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