OntarioThe following Air Quality information is available for Ontario:
Current ConditionsCurrent Air Quality is monitored by the Province of Ontario. The Air Quality Ontario Site reports current air quality conditions using an Air Quality Index. The current conditions are available year round. Air Quality ForecastsAir quality forecasts are issued by the Province of Ontario. The Air Quality Ontario site includes the Air Quality Forecast Report and maps of Today’s Forecast, Tomorrow’s Forecast and a Day Three Forecast . Smog Watches and Smog AdvisoriesSmog Watches and Smog Advisories are issued by the Province of Ontario. A Smog Watch is issued when there is a 50% chance that a smog day is coming within 3 days. A Smog Advisory is issued when a smog event is occurring now, is about to occur, or when there is a strong probability a smog day will occur within the next 24 hours. Smog Advisories are issued jointly by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Environment Canada. Ground Level Ozone versus Stratospheric OzoneGround level ozone and stratoshpheric ozone are made up of the same gas, ozone. Their effects on our health are very different. To find out more, click here. Ground Level Ozone and Particulate Matter – current conditionsFrom May to September, most Canadian residents can see maps showing the most recent readings of ground level ozone and particulate matter for their area on the AIRNow internet site. AIRNow is a cooperative venture between the Canadian and American federal governments and participating provincial and state governments. Air Quality Forecast Model (CHRONOS)The air quality in a given geographical area is strongly influenced by the meteorological conditions and emissions of various pollutants or their precursors, in and around the area of interest. Precursor emissions a significant distance away from a given region can still affect air quality in that region. The MSC uses a chemical transport model called CHRONOS (Canadian Regional and Hemispheric Ozone and NOx System) to make real-time predictions of air quality over Canada for the next few days. The accompanying animations show the model-simulated fields of ground-level ozone, an important indicator of air quality. Maps of Particulate Matter (PM) showing the levels of PM2.5 and PM10 are also available. CHRONOS forecasts the ground level ozone concentration at 10, 50 and 500 metres height. Air Quality and WeatherWeather conditions play a large part in the amount of air pollution we are exposed to at any given time. Atmospheric stability, along with wind speed and direction play a very important role. The following EC forecast products are used by air quality forecasters as guidance in the production of air quality forecasts. VentilationThe ventilation is and indication of the ability of the atmosphere to effectively provide “fresh air” over a given point. It is dependant on the mixing layer depth and the wind speed within the layer. Areas with poor ventilation (under 2,500 square metres per second) are highlighted on the maps. Wind MileageThe wind mileage is an approximation of the distance a parcel of air would travel during the day if moved by the wind. The air quality will suffer in areas with low wind mileage values should these areas become polluted. Areas with wind mileage below 200 kilometres are highlighted on the maps. Direction and speed of wind are plotted using a “wind barb” pointing in the direction the wind is coming from. The wind speed is shown by the barbs. Each barb represents 10 kilometres per hour, the half barbs 5 kilometres per hour and a filled triangle 50 kilometres per hour. Mixing Layer DepthThe mixing layer is the atmospheric zone near the earth’s surface where pollutants disperse rapidly. The depth of this layer depends on the temperature and on the stability of the atmosphere at low levels. Lower values of mixing layer depth indicate that the pollutants will be mixed in a smaller volume of air. Areas with a mixing layer depth of less than 400 metres are highlighted on the maps.
Created :
2005-09-30
Modified :
2005-10-14
Reviewed :
2005-10-14
Url of this page : http://www.msc.ec.gc.ca
/aq_smog/on/on_e.cfm The Green LaneTM, |
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