Demographia

Air Pollution Trends in US Metropolitan Areas: 1988-1997

Number of Days with PSI Values Greater than 100 at Trend Sites
Metropolitan Area 1988 1997 Change 1988 Rank (Best to Worst) 1997 Rank (Best to Worst) Rank: Change
Akron, OH 46 6 -87.0% 75 37 24
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY 23 3 -87.0% 30 22 24
Albuquerque, NM 9 0 -100.0% 17 1 1
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA 35 13 -62.9% 53 61 58
Atlanta, GA 44 26 -40.9% 71 81 79
Austin-San Marcos, TX 7 0 -100.0% 11 1 1
Bakersfield, CA 126 55 -56.3% 90 90 65
Baltimore, MD 60 30 -50.0% 84 84 70
Baton Rouge, LA 17 8 -52.9% 26 43 69
Bergen-Passaic, NJ 27 5 -81.5% 40 35 28
Birmingham, AL 33 8 -75.8% 51 43 35
Boston, MA-NH 28 8 -71.4% 42 43 45
Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY 31 1 -96.8% 50 16 15
Charleston-North Charleston, SC 11 3 -72.7% 22 22 43
Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SC 43 26 -39.5% 69 81 81
Chicago, IL 40 9 -77.5% 66 47 33
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN 57 11 -80.7% 82 55 29
Cleveland-Lorain-Elyria, OH 45 12 -73.3% 74 56 42
Columbus, OH 24 5 -79.2% 34 35 31
Dallas, TX 37 15 -59.5% 59 69 61
Dayton-Springfield, OH 37 9 -75.7% 59 47 36
Denver, CO 35 0 -100.0% 53 1 1
Detroit, MI 35 12 -65.7% 53 56 54
El Paso, TX 15 3 -80.0% 24 22 30
Fort Lauderdale, FL 3 0 -100.0% 7 1 1
Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 27 14 -48.1% 40 66 75
Fresno, CA 110 50 -54.5% 88 89 67
Gary, IN 37 12 -67.6% 59 56 52
Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland, MI 36 6 -83.3% 58 37 26
Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Pt, NC 46 13 -71.7% 75 61 44
Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, SC 35 9 -74.3% 53 47 39
Harrisburg-Lebanon-Carlisle, PA 39 9 -76.9% 63 47 34
Hartford, CT 39 16 -59.0% 63 73 63
Honolulu, HI 0 0 0.0% 1 1 86
Houston, TX 72 47 -34.7% 85 88 83
Indianapolis, IN 39 12 -69.2% 63 56 49
Jacksonville, FL 4 4 0.0% 8 30 86
Jersey City, NJ 30 9 -70.0% 47 47 46
Kansas City, MO-KS 23 18 -21.7% 30 74 85
Knoxville, TN 33 36 9.1% 51 86 90
Las Vegas, NV-AZ 30 0 -100.0% 47 1 1
Little Rock-North Little Rock, AR 9 1 -88.9% 17 16 21
Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA 239 63 -73.6% 92 91 40
Louisville, KY-IN 49 13 -73.5% 77 61 41
Memphis, TN-AR-MS 44 14 -68.2% 71 66 51
Miami, FL 8 3 -62.5% 14 22 59
Middlesex-Somerset-Hunterdon, NJ 35 18 -48.6% 53 74 73
Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI 40 4 -90.0% 66 30 19
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN-WI 11 0 -100.0% 22 1 1
Monmouth-Ocean, NJ 0 12 0.0% 1 56 86
Nashville, TN 55 20 -63.6% 79 77 56
Nassau-Suffolk, NY 22 8 -63.6% 29 43 56
New Haven-Meriden, CT 26 19 -26.9% 39 76 84
New Orleans, LA 24 6 -75.0% 34 37 37
New York, NY 57 23 -59.6% 82 80 60
Newark, NJ 41 13 -68.3% 68 61 50
Norfolk-VA Beach-Newport News, VA-NC 23 15 -34.8% 30 69 82
Oakland, CA 8 0 -100.0% 14 1 1
Oklahoma City, OK 8 4 -50.0% 14 30 70
Omaha, NE-IA 7 0 -100.0% 11 1 1
Orange County, CA 56 3 -94.6% 80 22 17
Orlando, FL 2 4 100.0% 6 30 91
Philadelphia, PA-NJ 53 32 -39.6% 78 85 80
Phoenix-Mesa, AZ 29 15 -48.3% 44 69 74
Pittsburgh, PA 43 20 -53.5% 69 77 68
Portland-Vancouver, OR-WA 9 0 -100.0% 17 1 1
Providence-Fall River-Warwick, RI-MA 18 10 -44.4% 27 53 76
Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC 4 13 225.0% 8 61 92
Richmond-Petersburg, VA 37 21 -43.2% 59 79 77
Riverside-San Bernardino, CA 185 106 -42.7% 91 92 78
Rochester, NY 24 6 -75.0% 34 37 37
Sacramento, CA 88 2 -97.7% 86 21 14
St. Louis, MO-IL 44 15 -65.9% 71 69 53
Salt Lake City-Ogden, UT 16 1 -93.8% 25 16 18
San Antonio, TX 7 3 -57.1% 11 22 64
San Diego, CA 123 14 -88.6% 89 66 22
San Francisco, CA 1 0 -100.0% 4 1 1
San Jose, CA 24 0 -100.0% 34 1 1
Scranton-Wilkes Barre-Hazleton, PA 30 9 -70.0% 47 47 46
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA 20 1 -95.0% 28 16 16
Springfield, MA 29 10 -65.5% 44 53 55
Syracuse, NY 1 0 -100.0% 4 1 1
Tacoma, WA 10 0 -100.0% 21 1 1
Tampa, FL 9 4 -55.6% 17 30 66
Toledo, OH 29 3 -89.7% 44 22 20
Tucson, AZ 6 1 -83.3% 10 16 26
Tulsa, OK 23 7 -69.6% 30 42 48
Ventura, CA 108 44 -59.3% 87 87 62
Washington, DC-MD-VA-WV 56 28 -50.0% 80 83 70
West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, FL 0 0 0.0% 1 1 86
Wilmington-Newark, DE-MD 28 6 -78.6% 42 37 32
Youngstown-Warren, OH 25 3 -88.0% 38 22 23
Total 5,299 3,137 -40.8%      
NOTES: The Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) integrates information on 5 major pollutants (particulate matter less than 10 microns in diameter, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, and nitrogen dioxide) across an entire monitoring network into a single number that represents the worst daily air quality experienced in an urban area. A PSI greater than 100 indicates that at least 1 criteria pollutant exceeded air quality standards on a given day; therefore, air quality would be in the unhealthful range on that day. In 1997, 4,738 monitoring sites reported air quality data. Air quality monitoring sites are selected as "trend sites" if they have complete data for at least 8 of the 10 years between 1988 and 1997. This table has been substantially revised from last year.
Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, National Air Quality and Emissions Trends Report, 1997 (Research Triangle Park, NC: 1999), Table A-15.

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