Average airborne levels of several dangerous pollutants climbed last year, according to a newly released EPA report card that blames the increases partly on wildfires tied to climate change.
Around the United States, concentrations of carbon monoxide, ozone and fine particulate matter all rose in comparison with 2022, the latest annual air trends analysis shows. Across 35 of the largest cities, the number of days with air quality rated “unhealthy for sensitive groups” or worse totaled 822, the highest in more than a decade.
Although air pollution by virtually any gauge has fallen markedly since the start of the century, the findings underscore the struggle to maintain those gains as smoke from longer-lasting and bigger blazes offsets cuts in emissions from power plants, cars and trucks.
In an accompanying news release, EPA touted a variety of recent regulations aimed at further tamping down those emissions but acknowledged “the influence of wildfires, weather and other natural events.”
