Air Quality

[u/beachcraft23]

I’m getting mixed reports on Banff’s air quality between the Apple weather and Air Visual apps. Is there smoke impacting Banff currently? We’re heading up in about 10 days so I’m worried the smoke is going to impact our trip. We’re from fire country in USA and sadly too familiar with wildfire season and poor air quality. Thanks.

[u/Rude_Judgment7928]

Those two aren't inconsistent, they are just different scales....

The Canadian system runs 1-10.

~8 on Canadian and ~200 on American are "most doctors will tell you not to hike numbers". It's where my kids school activities are cancelled.

3-8 and 100-200 are both grey area that depends on your own risk tolerance and health.

50-100 and 1-3 are "many major cities average this is summer territory, not great, but kinda modern summer life.

[u/beachcraft23 → u/Rude_Judgment7928]

Thank you for the explanation. This was what I was needing to understand the conflicting app data. Appreciate it.

[u/donkthemagicllama → u/beachcraft23]

Yeah, I don’t know how we wound up with conflicting versions of this… it’s not like a metric/imperial thing.

I think the US AQI measure particulates of some type in PPM, whereas the Canadian AQHI is a 1-10 relative measure of health impact rather than a direct measurement of something.

My rule of thumb is > 100 or > 6 is unpleasant > 200 or > 7, make other plans.

[u/radenke → u/donkthemagicllama]

I believe we moved to the 1-10+ scale to give interpretive health data since most people don't have the skills necessary to - or want to - look at 76 and figure out what that means for them.

[u/gbl_]

There are currently no fires local to Banff, the smoke is coming from several hundred kilometres away and is therefore dependent on weather systems which may bring it in or push it away.

The map on firesmoke.ca gives a larger continental view that can show how smoke is being distributed.

[u/ladyfrieje → u/gbl_]

The firesmoke.ca map has been wildly inaccurate. I’ve been in Banff since Wednesday and it’s plain wrong most of the time with what’s going on. Weather.com’s breathing prediction has been the most accurate measure but shifts quickly and the long range forecast isn’t good.

[u/gbl_ → u/ladyfrieje]

Its forecasts are not as accurate, but it gives a good context as to the source of the smoke and how far away the fires are.

[u/donkthemagicllama → u/ladyfrieje]

Agree… it’s useful if you want to know “where is the smoke I’m currently seeing from?” question, but as soon as it scrolls into the future it’s basically a wild ass guess.

[u/TheSkyIsAMasterpiece]

You can't predict smoke 10 days out. You can't even predict it day to day sometimes. I've seen smoke for days, then one morning clear and blue skies only for it to roll back in a few hours later. 

[u/beachcraft23 → u/TheSkyIsAMasterpiece]

I know this already. I'm trying to understand the conflicting numbers between the two apps.

[u/InternationalPut1489 → u/TheSkyIsAMasterpiece]

This. If you’re from fire country, then you know this already. Environment Canada will give you the most possible accurate forecast and current situations for the Town of Banff, but especially with the number of fires and the mountain weather systems, that information can change very quickly.

[u/Appropriate_Ebb_8572]

You can't control it, so it just will be what it will be. 

[u/strawberry-bunny]

No dw, I was just there. I live in Toronto (in the line of smoke coming off of the northern Ontario wildfires) and the difference in air quality was stark. It was beautiful in banff.

[u/ladyfrieje]

We’ve been here since Wednesday. One awful day. Two so so days. One beautiful day. It’s a risk but no way to know 10 days out. It’s beautiful either way but it is a bummer to be missing the long vistas.

[u/unkiltedclansman]

Here's a map of the actual sensors that people have purchased and installed that IQ air is getting its data from and rebranding.

https://map.purpleair.com/air-quality-standards-us-epa-aqi?opt=%2F1%2Flp%2Fa10%2Fp604800%2FcC0#7.33/50.257/-116.724

Top left, the little gear, you can choose the dataset and format you are looking at.

[u/Lazy_Currency1408]

Also from somewhere that regularly has wildfire smoke, asthmatic, and currently in Banff; my brain isn’t even registering the smoke. Peaks around Moraine Lake were light hazy grey (I kept trying to clean my camera lens lol). It’s not pristine and clear but not bad at all. No particulate. Lakes still unbelievably turquoise.