The air we breathe directly affects our health. Breathing in air that is contaminated with particulate matter (PM) can lead to the development of acute or chronic respiratory conditions., like asthma, COPD, or chronic bronchitis. Air quality is often invisible to the naked eye, which is why there are tools to check the air quality based on the amount of particulate matter. So, what is particulate matter, anyway? Particulate matter is mainly categorized as PM10 and as PM2.5. The numbers are micrometers, with PM10 being four times larger than PM2.5. The smaller the particulate, the more likely it is to reach the inside of the lungs and even reach the bloodstream, making it much more dangerous than other types of particulate.

What Causes Poor Air Quality?

Poor air quality is caused by particulate matter in the air, which is then inhaled into the lungs. Air pollution is caused by two types of particulate matter: PM10 and PM2.5, with the numbers representing the diameter of the particle in micrometers.

PM10 is thicker in diameter and coarser, which is usually filtered by the nose and throat, posing limited risk to health. PM10 is often dust, pollen, and other pollutants that can be seen by the naked eye.

PM2.5 is much finer and smaller in diameter, often unable to be filtered by the nose and throat, this type of particulate matter us inhaled deeper into the lungs and poses a much larger threat to health. This type of particulate matter is caused by smoke, construction, combustion, and other emissions.

Factors such as pollution from cars or factories, burning of fossil fuels, agriculture, pollen, and fires. In Flagstaff, the largest contributor to poor air quality is particulate matter from wildfire and prescribed fire. Both release PM 2.5 and pose the biggest risk to the health of the community, which is why I am focusing on reducing its impact in this project.