Calgary air quality worse than Shanghai due to wildfire smoke

Smoky skies will continue to hang over the City of Calgary on Wednesday, but they are expected to improve, rising to 8 out of 10 on the air quality index.

Smoke from wildfires in Washington State has made the air quality in Calgary so poor, that it is worse than the air quality of several cities reknown for their air pollution, says one city official.

Mandeep Dhaliwal, from the Calgary Region Airshed Zone, told CTV News Channel that Calgary’s air quality is now worse than the air quality of Los Angeles, Shanghai and New Delhi.

"Those cities were doing much better than Calgary yesterday," Dhaliwal said.

Smoke from the wildfires has drifted over Calgary, prompting the city to issue a fire ban and an air quality advisory on Tuesday.

The fire ban prohibits the use of fire pits, recreational campfires, chimneys, and wood-burning devices.

The air quality advisory warns residents to be aware of the health concerns associated with poor air quality, and encourages them to reduce their exposure.

Dhaliwal said residents should try to stay indoors, and keep windows and doors closed. As well, young children should be kept inside, as they are at increased risk because their lungs have not fully developed, he said.

Dr. Jason Cabaj, a medical officer of health with Alberta Health Services, said the smoke from the wildfires can cause both short- and long-term health effects.

"The particles in wood smoke are quite small and can penetrate deeply into the lungs and cause inflammation," Cabaj told a news conference on Wednesday. "That can lead to a whole range of health effects."

Even those who are considered healthy should monitor their activity levels, he added.

"For the general population, we do know that air quality can affect their health," Cabaj said. "And when it's of sufficient poor quality, as it has been over the past several days with the wood smoke, people are at risk who don’t have chronic conditions."

Cabaj said Wednesday afternoon that the air quality level in Calgary was in the lower range, but it was expected to get worse later in the day.

"The forecast right now is that we will be in the very high risk range later today and tonight," he said.

The smoky sky caused the moon over the city to appear red overnight. Normally, red moons are associated with lunar eclipses, but last night's moon was caused by the air conditions.