Late at night, on November 17th, the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) for the Comox Valley was set at a 7, a ‘High Health Risk’. The setting was in place for 6 hours.
The next morning, the BC Government announced an Air Quality Advisory for the valley.
Fortunately, the advisory lasted only one day as weather conditions improved. The AQHI risk also was lowered as our fine particulate matter readings came down.
This fall we have had mild temperatures and strong winds. This has helped to keep the Health Index and the fine particulate readings down for the most part.
Unfortunately, as our temperatures are cooling and more and more people are stoking their wood stoves, we can expect to see higher health risk warnings and air quality advisories.