Air quality alert Tuesday amid Canadian wildfire smoke

Our weather pattern is quiet, but there’s a lot going on in Minnesota skies this week.

The latest atmospheric irritant? Ozone.

Ozone is produced at ground level when pollutants like car exhaust mix with sunlight. The chemical reaction can produce unhealthy air near the ground where we breathe.

Our light southerly wind flow has pushed concentrated pollutants into Minnesota. That’s why the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued an air quality alert for Tuesday for most of central and southern Minnesota.

Anoka-Benton-Blue Earth-Brown-Carver-Chippewa-Chisago-Dakota- Faribault-Freeborn-Goodhue-Hennepin-Isanti-Kanabec-Kandiyohi-Lac Qui Parle-Le Sueur-Martin-McLeod-Meeker-Mille Lacs-Nicollet- Ramsey-Redwood-Renville-Rice-Scott-Sherburne-Sibley-Stearns- Steele-Swift-Waseca-Washington-Watonwan-Wright-Yellow Medicine- Including the tribal nations of Mille Lacs, Prairie Island, and Upper Sioux Including the cities of Albert Lea, Apple Valley, Blaine, Bloomington, Brooklyn Park, Buffalo, Burnsville, Eagan, Eden Prairie, Farmington, Hastings, Mankato, Maple Grove, Minneapolis, Minnetonka, Northfield, Plymouth, Prior Lake, Ramsey, Rogers, Rosemount, Roseville, Shakopee, St. Cloud, St. Louis Park, St. Paul, Stillwater, Waconia, White Bear Lake, and Woodbury

439 PM CDT Mon May 22 2023

...AIR QUALITY ALERT IN EFFECT FROM 12 PM CDT TUESDAY THROUGH 8 PM CDT TUESDAY...

WHAT...The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has issued an Air Quality Alert for ozone pollution. The Air Quality Index (AQI) is expected to reach the Orange or Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups category.

WHERE...Central Minnesota.

WHEN...From 12 PM CDT Tuesday through 8 PM CDT Tuesday. IMPACTS...Sensitive groups, such as people with lung disease (including asthma), heart disease, children and older adults, and people who are active outdoors may experience health effects.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Ground-level ozone is expected to be high during the afternoon hours on Tuesday, and air quality is expected to reach the Orange (unhealthy for sensitive groups) AQI category across central Minnesota. Southerly winds are transporting pollutants into the state. Sunny skies, warm temperatures, and low humidity will allow these pollutants to react in the air to produce ground- level ozone. Ozone will be highest during the afternoon and early evening hours when sunshine is most abundant, and temperatures are highest. Air quality is expected to reach the Orange AQI category. This is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Sensitive groups, such as people with lung disease (including asthma), heart disease, children and older adults, and people who are active outdoors, should limit prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion. Reduce or eliminate activities that contribute to air pollution, such as outdoor burning, and use of residential wood burning devices. Reduce vehicle trips and vehicle idling as much as possible.

Wildfire smoke, too

Tuesday also brings another area of elevated wildfire smoke across Minnesota. A cold front moving into northern Minnesota may bring some of that smoke down to ground level Tuesday.

Cooler midweek

That cool front will clear out the air by Wednesday. It will also drop temperatures a good 10 degrees across Minnesota this week.

Our 80-degree temperatures will be pushed back into southwestern Minnesota. Highs will hover around 70 in the Twin Cities Wednesday, with frigid 50s in the lake breeze zones near Lake Superior.

Summery temperatures will return by next weekend. Looks for highs in the 80s to expand across Minnesota once again.

A few spotty showers will roam northern and central Minnesota Tuesday into Wednesday, but most of the week will be dry across most of Minnesota.