Air Quality
This indicator examines trends in air quality related to the concentrations of fine particulate matter in the Puget Sound Georgia Basin. Fine particulate matter is one component of air quality, chosen because of its effect on human health and visibility.

	PM2.5 is forecasted to increase over 19 percent in the Puget Sound region between 1996 and 2018, and 10 percent in the Lower Fraser Valley between 2000 and 2020. Read more…
	The main sources of PM2.5 in the region are mobile emissions, permitted industrial emissions, and area sources. Read more…
	Exposure to PM2.5 leads to cardiovascular and respiratory effects. Read more…
	BC and Washington have worked for over a decade on shared environmental management. Read more…

Introduction to the Air Quality Indicator

Air Quality/Fine Particle Pollution

This indicator examines trends in air quality related to the concentrations of fine particulate matter in the Puget Sound Georgia Basin. Fine particulate matter is one component of air quality, chosen because of its effect on human health and visibility. This indicator focuses on fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) in Puget Sound from 1999 to 2004 and the Georgia Basin from 1996 to 2004. "PM_2.5" refers to small particles that are 2.5 micrometers or less in diameter. For comparison, the width of a single human hair is 80 micrometers. PM_2.5 comes directly from combustion processes and also from reactions in the atmosphere. Sources of PM_2.5 include diesel engines in motor vehicles, marine vessels and construction and other off-road equipment.

Background

We breathe more than 11,000 liters of air each day and children breathe more air per pound of body weight. Nothing is more central to life than the air we breathe. Imagine yourself at the center of a group of ever-increasing concentric circles; in the middle is you and your own personal air space. Around you is your particular indoor air quality, then the air in your neighborhood, and then finally your airshed. The idea of an airshed is similar to that of a watershed, and can be defined as the air over a given geographic area, generally with some terrain-like features such as mountains that mix or restrict the movement of air within the airshed.

There may be areas, such as urban industrial areas and concentrated urban transportation corridors, that have unique air quality issues, but this indicator provides a general view of air quality in the region.

The Puget Sound Georgia Basin Airshed

Collectively, we live, work and breathe in the Puget Sound and Georgia Basin airshed. This area is actually two smaller airsheds that together comprise the larger and interdependent Puget Sound Georgia Basin (PSGB) airshed. 'Interdependence' indicates that the quality of one affects the other and vice versa.

The Georgia Basin airshed comprises the Canadian portion of the Basin, Whatcom and San Juan Counties in Washington State, and the southern coastline of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The Puget Sound airshed encompasses the counties to the south of Whatcom County and includes all of Puget Sound.¹
View a topographic map of the region.

Air quality in this airshed is affected by weather patterns that circulate air and by our topography. Topography is the position and elevation of land and includes shape, height and patterns of land masses such as mountains, valleys and hillsides.

Why Choose Fine Particulate Matter?

There are many types of air pollutants, including toxic pollutants, gasses including ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides and particles. We have chosen fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) because it causes significant negative effects on human health and is prevalent throughout the Georgia Basin Puget Sound airshed. Because of their extremely small size, fine particles can lodge deep into the lungs, making it difficult for us to expunge them through coughing or sneezing. Fine particulate matter can cause or aggravate a number of health problems and have been linked with illnesses and deaths from heart or lung disease. Particle pollution can also increase susceptibility to respiratory infections and can aggravate existing respiratory diseases, such as asthma and chronic bronchitis, causing more use of medication and more doctor visits.

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