WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) -The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality is inviting residents to a webinar to hear updates on fine particulate matter air pollution.
“Fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, is any extremely small particle emitted by manmade (cars, industry, fires) and natural (wildfires, plants, animals) sources. Breathing air with high levels of PM2.5 for extended periods is linked to health effects including shortness of breath and heart conditions,” DEQ wrote in a press release.
DAQ staff will discuss the state’s efforts to meet the revised annual standard for PM2.5, which is 12.0 micrograms per cubic meter of air to 9.0 micrograms per cubic meter. The efforts include reviewing the impact that smoke from the 2023 Canadian wildfires had on the state’s air quality.
The webinar will also review the Air Quality Index, how to check air quality forecasts and ways residents can protect themselves from the harmful effects of smoke.
The webinar is scheduled for Monday, Aug. 19, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. and a recording will be posted to the Division’s website. Live Spanish interpretation will be available during the webinar.
You can register to join the webinar here. For more information about the revised PM2.5 air quality standard, visit here.
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