2020 Annual Air Quality Index Statistics by Sector

Ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs

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2020 Annual Air Quality Index Statistics by Sector

Air quality varied considerably among the 17 urban sectors for which the AQI was calculated. In 2020, the percentage of days in which the air quality was deemed “poor” went from 1% (Gatineau—Hull) to 21% (Rouyn-Noranda—downtown).

In overall terms, the respective average AQI “good,” “acceptable” and “poor” proportions of days was 54%, 40% and 6%. In comparison to the preceding year, results for the “good” and “poor” categories rose by 1%, while the figure for the “acceptable” category fell.

It should be noted that unlike regional statistics, which rely mainly on homogeneous measurements of fine particulate matter and ozone, sector statistics can take into account pollutants from a local source that is not detected at the regional level. As a result, the value of the AQI in a sector may differ from that of the region in which the sector is located.

Local sources of air emissions that affect a given sector’s AQI vary from one location to the next.

*Occurs when the concentration of at least one of the contaminants used to calculate the AQI exceeds its hourly reference value.