TRENTON REPORT
From June 6 to June 8, New Jersey recorded its worst air quality since 1980. On Wednesday June 7, the air quality index reached 486 in Somerset County. Anything over 100 is concerning. This severe dip in air quality was owing mainly to the Canadian wildfire smoke that drifted south and east across the United States.
“Unfortunately, environmental issues have no boundaries, and we expect to see an increase in the frequency and intensity of wildfires in the Northeast,” Philip Demokritou, an environmental engineering professor at the Rutgers School of Public Health, told the Bergen Record.
New Jersey has seen intense wildfires that have added to the problem. Also in early June, a Bass River State Forest fire burned 5,475 acres over four days before firefighters succeeded in containing the blaze.
“Unfortunately, the frequency of fires due to climate change and dry, hot conditions in our state is a new reality and we must stay vigilant,” said Sierra Club NJ Chapter Director Anjuli Ramos-Busot. “Not only do these fires pose a risk to our state lands and forests, but also to the health of wildlife and communities who live on the frontlines.”
The 2023 State of the Air report from the American Lung Association found that particulate matter–fine particles that embed in the lungs and cause a range of illnesses–has worsened in New Jersey, although there were some improvements in ozone smog levels. The Philadelphia-Camden and New York-Newark metro areas remain among the worst nationwide for ozone.