Columbus Named Most Polluted Major City in the United States for 2023
A new study out today names Columbus as the most polluted major city in the United States for 2023 and says it’s the second year running for Ohio’s capital.
IQAir, a Swiss tech company that monitors air quality, released its 6th Annual World Air Quality Report detailing the world’s most polluted countries, territories and regions in 2023. For the report, data from more than 30,000 air quality monitoring stations across 7,812 locations in 134 countries, territories and regions was analyzed by IQAir’s air quality scientists.
For 2023, Columbus had a fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration of 13.9 micrograms per cubic meter of air (μg/m3), according to IQAir, two to three times more than the World Health Organization’s annual PM2.5 guideline of 5 μg/m3.
Orrville and Grove City had worse air quality, at 14.3 μg/m3 each, but aren’t considered a “major city” for the study.
Around Ohio, Canton came in at 12.1 μg/m3, Cleveland had 11.8, Toledo 11.8, Cincinnati 11.1, Dayton 11, Akron 10.6 and Youngstown 10.5.
What is Fine Particulate Matter?
Fine particulate matter are particles that are less than 2.5 microns in diameter. As a comparison, the average human hair is 50 to 70 microns thick. Breathing unhealthy levels of PM2.5 can increase the risk of heart disease, asthma and low birth weight, according to the New York State Department of Health.
Smoke from Canadian Wildfires Affects Ohio Air Quality
June 2023 was the worst month for air quality in Ohio, IQAir data shows, when smoke from wildfires in Quebec was drifting over the state.
Canadian wildfires smoke triggered statewide air quality alerts that summer and the first “unhealthy” air quality level in mid-Ohio since August 2003. Most cities in Ohio were three to seven times the WHO PM2.5 standard. July and August were also bad months for air quality, at three to five times the standard, but were better than June.
IQAir isn’t the only organization to issue reports on air quality. Here’s what the others have to say.
