2017 was smokiest summer in over 100 years
Oct 4, 2017, 1:27 PM
In this Aug. 3, 2017 file photo, cyclists peddle in view of downtown Seattle, cloaked in a haze of smoke. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, file)
(AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, file)
No need to keep wondering if this was the smokiest summer you’ve ever experienced in Western Washington. Most of us haven’t seen one this bad in our lifetimes.
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According to data from the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, which measured atmospheric particulates, August had the highest values in the past 17 years for that record. You can see the graph for yourself on Cliff Mass’ blog.
Mass writes that August was the smokiest month out of any over the past 17 years.
“Very impressive,” he added.
Which means, “for the younger folks around Puget Sound … summer 2017 was the smokiest you have experienced. This is probably true for those of you who have gray hairs.”
You would have to go back about 100 years or more to find a smokier summer — or smokier events — Mass says.
The reason for all the smoke? A combination of the record heat wave, wildfires east of the Cascades, and smoke drifting down from more than 100 wildfires in British Columbia. To top it off, stagnant air kept the smoke trapped in areas of Western Washington.
There were stretches of time in Western Washington, especially along the I-5 corridor, when the Air Quality Index was rating the quality of our air as “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” or simply “unhealthy” at times. The air quality was compared to stagnant winter air and was so bad that the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency issued a burn ban that prohibited barbecuing.
