Generally Good
Statewide Air Quality
Fairbanks PM2.5
Local Issue
Historical data
Coming soon
Long-run charts for this indicator are on the way.
Compared to the United States
| Indicator | Alaska | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Days Above PM2.5 Standard (Fairbanks area) | 15 | 3 |
National ranking
Alaska ranks #28 of 33 states by average pm2.5.
| #1 | Kentucky | 0 |
| #2 | Louisiana | 0 |
| #3 | Vermont | 4 |
| #4 | Wyoming | 4 |
| #5 | South Dakota | 5.5 |
| #6 | Maine | 5.5 |
| #7 | Massachusetts | 6.4 |
| #8 | Rhode Island | 6.8 |
| #9 | Florida | 6.9 |
| #10 | New York | 6.9 |
| #11 | Delaware | 7 |
| #12 | Virginia | 7.6 |
| #13 | Wisconsin | 7.6 |
| #14 | Washington | 7.6 |
| #15 | Michigan | 8 |
| #16 | Tennessee | 8.1 |
| #17 | North Carolina | 8.1 |
| #18 | New Jersey | 8.4 |
| #19 | Missouri | 8.4 |
| #20 | Arizona | 8.5 |
| #21 | Georgia | 8.7 |
| #22 | Indiana | 8.9 |
| #23 | Ohio | 9.1 |
| #24 | Illinois | 9.1 |
| #25 | Minnesota | 10 |
| #26 | Utah | 18 |
| #27 | Colorado | 25 |
| #28 | Alaska | 30 |
| #29 | Montana | 35 |
| #30 | New Hampshire | 35 |
| #31 | Texas | 48 |
| #32 | Oregon | 85% |
| #33 | New Mexico | 300 |
Overview
Vast, sparsely populated land keeps Alaska's air clean on average, but the Fairbanks North Star Borough regularly violates federal PM2.5 standards in winter due to wood-stove heating trapped by temperature inversions.
Did you know?
- Fairbanks experiences some of the worst wintertime particulate pollution in the US due to wood smoke trapped by cold-air inversions.