Calgary's smoky skies reached Beijing-levels of air pollution, says expert

With thereturn of thick smoke from wildfires expected Wednesday, an air quality expert is comparing conditions in Calgary this week to pollution in Beijing.

Dr. Ke Du, an assistant professorat the University of Calgary, says the amounts of fine particulate matter in the air wereat similar levels, although the types of particulates differ.

On Monday morning, the Air Quality Health Index for Calgary reached seven out of 10, which indicates a high health risk.

"In terms of the fine particle concentration, it is approaching to the level of in Beijing," said Du, who works at the SchulichSchool of Engineering. "This exceeds the standard and is not good for long-term exposure."

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The concentration of particulate matter locally was up to 80 micrograms per cubic metre, Du said. In Beijing, it can be above 100 for long periods of time.

He noted Calgary's exposure is for only a few days, whereas the Chinese capital experiences poor air quality over most of its winter.

On Tuesday, the air quality in Calgary had dropped to two on the index (low health risk), but it's expected to reach six (moderate risk) on Wednesday.

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Other parts of southern Alberta enjoyed a respitefrom smoke-filled skies on Tuesday, thanks to a cold front that flushed a lot of the smoke out of the province.But new alerts were issued in the afternoon.

More thick smokewas expected to cross theRockiesby Wednesday, affecting central and southern Alberta.

The smoke is coming from forest fires in B.C., affecting a wide swath of Western Canada.

Environment Canada says the thickest smoke and poorest air quality will probably hit the area betweenHinton, Red Deer and Edmonton.It saysthe air quality index will likely reach 10 out of 10 in parts of central Alberta.

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