Current Air Quality Data - Western Mtns Region

Below are the hourly air quality concentrations for theWestern Mtns Region of Maine for Nov 25, 2009.

Data is reported based on the Air Quality Index.

Special status notes:

Cold Weather Statement for Particle Pollution: 1) At this time of year, clear nights with little or no wind can allow pollutants to be trapped near the ground. If calm conditions persist during the day, Particle Pollution levels will likely remain high long enough for the daily average to be Moderate. Urban areas and Valleys are most prone to these higher levels of pollutants. If you have a heart or lung disease, you will want to check the forecast nearly every day through the winter months. 2) In addition, Moderate levels of coarse particles can occur on windy days or during high traffic times near roadways that have dried out after being heavily sanded.

Region Summary - Nov 25, 2009

This chart displays the region's final AQI for each day of the last 7 regardless of which pollutant produced that value.

Bar chart showing high values for each of the last seven days, for the Western Mtns region.

Hourly Air Concentrations - Nov 25, 2009

[Text explaining what these graphs are]. Ozone charts chart display a running 8-hour average AQI for each hour up to the last hour posted. Particle Pollution charts use a 24-hour running average.

Lovell Ozone

Monitor Closed

Interpreting the data

The hourly pollutant values, shown in the graphs, are based on the national Air Quality Index (AQI). The AQI is computed from data collected by a network of air monitoring sites. The AQI converts the pollutant concentrations to a value easily compared to the health standard of each pollutant.

8-hour Ozone and 24-hour Particle Pollution concentrations with an AQI over 100 have exceeded the health standard.

The Regional Summary graph is a visual display of the final AQI value for each day of the last seven days. The final AQI value for a given day is the highest AQI reached by any monitor in that region regardless of which pollutant was involved.

Site-specific graphs display the AQI associated with the current running average. When viewed late in the day one can see how the pollution levels changed over the course of that day.

The color-coding is based on the AQI. Green indicates values in the "good" range; yellow in the "moderate" range; orange in the "unhealthy for sensitive groups" range; red in the "unhealthy" range, and purple in the "very unhealthy" range. An X indicates suspect data.