My name is Sophia and I’m Scooter’s friend. I’m excited to finally meet you all. Now that Spare The Air season is here, Scooter and I want to help you understand our most important tool that helps you know when air pollution is especially bad, and when you should avoid any strenuous outdoor activities. This tool is called the Air Quality Index, or AQI for short.
The AQI has six categories:
Hazardous is 301 to 500. The entire population is more likely to experience serious health effects and should avoid all outdoor exertion.
Very Unhealthy is 201 to 300. Everyone may experience more serious health effects and should avoid all outdoor exertion.
Unhealthy is 151 to 200. Everyone may begin to experience some adverse health effects and should limit prolonged outdoor exertion. Members of the sensitive groups should avoid prolonged outdoor exertion.
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups is 101 to 150. People with heart and lung disease, older adults and children are at a greater risk and should limit prolonged outdoor exertion.
Moderate is 51 to 100. People who have a unique sensitivity to air pollution should consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.
Good is 0 to 50. No health impacts are expected when air quality is in this range. When the AQI is at this level, it means you can do a happy dance! You can play outside all day without having to worry about air pollution. My and Scooter’s favorite days are when the AQI chart is in the GREEN range!
On a Spare The Air day, it’s up to us to remind our parents of ways to help reduce air pollution, such as reducing their driving (or not driving at all), carpooling or taking public transit. People with heart and lung disease, older adults and children are at a greater risk and should limit outdoor activities.
For more air quality information, browse my website. And, don’t forget to ask your parents to download the FREE Sacramento Region Air Quality app. They can use the app to check the daily air quality forecast and get current conditions at the air monitoring sites in our region: http://www.aqmdscooter.com/index.php/videos/%E2%80%8E.
You can also check Scooter’s calendar to see where he will be visiting next.
Until next time!