Experts at the Department of Ecology are calling the latest stretch of hazardous air in Washington “unprecedented,” according to a new post on the Washington Smoke Blog.
Although we’ve spent less time this year breathing unhealthy air compared to wildfires season in previous years, the amount of hazardous air in recent days and weeks is far beyond normal.
The blog post said that even if you go back over 10 years to 2006, “we don’t see hazardous conditions occurring for anywhere as long.”
Southern Yakima County and parts of Okanogan County had the most number of polluted days this month, but the worst air was found in the Columbia River Gorge and Clark County.
“Not the longest we’ve had to endure the crummy air, but this is the dirtiest air we’ve had to breathe as a state. And the season isn’t over yet,” the post read.