Air quality in Henderson

What is the air quality level in Henderson?

Henderson, located in Clark County of Nevada, is the second largest city in the state and has a close proximity to Las Vegas. The air quality in Henderson has come in consistently with good levels in times past, and continues to do so in more present times, with air quality readings in late June of 2021 showing low levels of pollution. However, as was seen on record over the course of 2020, as well as mid-2021, the air pollution levels are capable of spiking up suddenly, causing the US AQI level to rise along with the PM2.5 count.

PM2.5 refers to particulate matter that is 2.5 microns or less in diameter, or roughly 30 times smaller than the width of a human hair. This minute size allows it to penetrate deep into the tissue of the lungs, causing respiratory irritation and inflammation of the lung tissue, along with potential scarring, if enough of the ultrafine particles are inhaled over a period of time.

This property makes it one of the most dangerous pollutants found in the air, and as such it is used as a prominent measure of air pollution alongside the US AQI reading.

In regards to the US AQI levels seen in late June of 2021, a reading of 23 was on record. This placed Henderson into the 'good' air quality ratings bracket, which requires a US AQI reading of anywhere between 0 to 50 to be classified as such. This is the most optimal level of air quality, with the 'good' rating being the lowest one available on the US AQI scale. It is color coded as green, for ease of reference and navigation when referring to the air quality maps, graphs and forecasts on this page, as well as throughout the IQAir website.

At the time in which the above reading of US AQI was taken, the PM2.5 count was also found to not be in excess of the World Health Organization's (WHO's) exposure recommendation. This means that the air would be clean, free from clouds of smoke, haze or fine particles that may permeate the atmosphere during more polluted periods of the year. As mentioned, the air quality in Henderson can change suddenly, making it subject to fluctuations. However, these are not excessive in nature, although those with a sensitive disposition towards pollutants may be more at risk of suffering from respiratory related disorders.

Such individuals may wish to stay up to date with hourly forecast readings, which are available both on the air quality map found on this page, as well as via the AirVisual app. Those who potentially fall into the sensitive or at-risk demographic include young children and babies, as well as the elderly, pregnant women, along with those that have poor health, pre-existing conditions or compromised immune systems.

Subsequent warnings will also be shown along with recommendations as to how to conduct oneself to reduce pollution exposure, which include actions such as wearing fine particle filtering masks, avoiding strenuous outdoor activity, along with sealing off all doors and windows to prevent the indoor air pollution levels from rising, and running air purifiers if possible.

Observing some of the other US AQI readings taken over June of 2021, it can be seen that a majority of them fell into the 'good' air quality ratings bracket. However, there were a few days on record that went up a ranking into the 'moderate' pollution ratings bracket. This requires a US AQI reading of anywhere between 51 to 100 to be classified as such, and whilst it is not overtly hazardous to the health of the general public, those with pulmonary or cardiac conditions may start to be subject to minor respiratory irritation.

These two readings that went over the 'good' rating of air quality were 54 and 57, showing that they were not excessive in nature and still on the bottom end of the 'moderate' ratings scale. As such, Henderson is a city with an overall respectable level of air quality, only on occasion straying out of the more appreciable air quality ratings bracket and into the slightly higher range. The reasons as to why air pollution levels can rise in Henderson will be discussed in short, along with some of the various health implications that exposure to them can bring.

What causes polluted air in Henderson?

Henderson, and by greater proximity the state of Nevada, has a number of pollution related issues that can cause elevations in air pollution throughout the state, as well as within Henderson itself, although on a far smaller scale. The air pollution sources can be categorized into ones that are produced by anthropogenic or industrial activity. Other causes of air pollution are ones such as natural disasters, with wildfires being responsible for exposing millions of Americans to highly damaging PM2.5 along with numerous other chemical compounds, all of which have a variety of negative health effects.

In Nevada, wildfire season tends to occur around June, and is considered as part of the Western United States wildfires collective. Although many of them were contained within a month of their initial blaze, tens of thousands of acres of land sustained damage, with the combustion of all the organic matter in the path of the wildfires releasing tons of dangerous air contaminants.

Some of these pollutants would go into forming the US AQI number, which itself is a figure aggregated from the calculation of the main pollutants found in the air in Henderson, and throughout the state of Nevada. They include compounds such as ozone (O₃), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and the two types of particles, PM2.5 and PM10, with PM10 being the larger and less dangerous of the two.

In 2020, Henderson was seen with a PM2.5 yearly average of 6.5 μg/m³. This reading placed it into the World Health Organization's (WHO's) target goal for the best quality of air at 10 μg/m³ or less, a rating that is coveted throughout the world, with many cities, particularly in more polluted regions of the world struggling to meet this standard.

This reading also put Henderson in 4234^th place out of all cities ranked worldwide for 2020, placing it into the upper echelons of cleanest cities globally. However, there was some room for improvement, due to several months showing increased levels of PM2.5, although they may on occasion be attributed to reasons that are outside of governmental or individual control.

Main causes of air pollution present in Henderson that would cause these elevations would be ones such as the aforementioned wildfires, and the subsequent smoke and haze clouds that they give off. These clouds can drift for many miles, pushed by strong wind currents over to cities or states great distances away, causing their pollution levels to spike rapidly and bringing with them many adverse health issues.

Others include emissions and fumes given off from the many vehicles present throughout Henderson and the state of Nevada. Vehicle ownership is consistently on the rise, being an issue of global proportions. Although many countries have tried to make a shift towards more sustainable transport, with electric cars, cycling and walking incentives, along with better public transport infrastructure all aiding in this process, it still remains to be seen that the millions of vehicles in use on the roads are responsible for year round ambient raises in the pollution level.

The combustion of fuels, particularly diesel fuel which is still utilized by certain motors or larger freight vehicles such as trucks and lorries, can release large amounts of chemical pollutants and fine particles into the atmosphere. Furthermore, the gradual wear and tear of tire treads can cause many tons of microscopic rubber particles to enter into both the atmosphere as well as the earth or bodies of water. This can cause environmental damage and harm to localized ecosystems, along with being detrimental to human health when such particles are inhaled.

A pollutant that is of particular concern throughout Nevada is ozone, a secondary pollutant that forms from gases, chemical compounds and the various oxides of nitrogen (NOx) being exposed to higher levels of sunlight, which is found in abundance throughout the state. The solar radiation forces a chemical reaction, causing the formation of ozone, or smog as it is more commonly known when it accumulates in large, visible clouds that blanket roads.

Whilst this is an essential part of the upper atmosphere, or the ozone layer as it is better known as, when found on ground level it is a dangerous pollutant, causing a plethora of health issues that include amongst them ailments such as nausea, difficulty breathing, lung tissue inflammation and the triggering of respiratory conditions such as asthma.

What are some of the pollutants that can be found in the air in Henderson?

Whilst Henderson maintains a good level of air quality, it must be noted that any level or amount of air pollution carries with it the possibility of causing adverse health effects. Along with this, lower readings of pollution can also bring with them a wide variety of contaminants (just in smaller volumes), which can vary from area to area, typically based on the polluting sources (as an example, areas that see a high level of traffic will often have higher concentrations of nitrogen dioxide in the air above, with the two often correlating).

Other pollutants that can be found in the air in Henderson besides the main ones that go into making up the overall US AQI aggregate are black carbon and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Black carbon is the main component of soot, and has potent carcinogenic effects when inhaled, along with climate changing properties, giving it a double edged effect that is both detrimental to the environment as well as human health.

Both black carbon and VOCs are formed from the incomplete combustion of both fossil fuels and organic matter, and as such wildfires and other similar events can release large amount of tiny soot particles into the air, affecting those in a wide vicinity around the original site. Some examples of VOCs include benzene, styrene, xylene, toluene, methylene chloride and formaldehyde.

Other pollutants that may be found around industrial areas or construction sites would be fine particles of silica dust, along with gravel, earth or sand. Depending on its size, it can fall into either the ultrafine (PM2.5) or coarse (PM10) collective. Other pollutants also include mercury, lead, cadmium, heavy metals which can be given off as a byproduct from the combustion of certain materials.

When is the air quality at its worst in Henderson?

Observing the air quality data that was collected and calibrated over the course of 2020, it can be seen that Henderson had its highest levels of air pollution both at the very start of the year, as well as at the end of the year, all of which came in with mild elevations in pollution. This may indicate a pattern whereby the pollution levels start to rise after August, and continue on into the earlier months of the following year.

These months were January and February, along with August through to December. Their respective readings were 7.2 μg/m³, 6.2 μg/m³, 8.8 μg/m³, 13 μg/m³, 8.4 μg/m³, 6.1 μg/m³ and 7.6 μg/m³ respectively.

This placed September into the most polluted month of the year spot, which was seen throughout the whole of Nevada in 2020, with each city on record showing a PM2.5 reading that was many times over the year's lowest reading. Septembers PM2.5 figure of 13 μg/m³ would place the month into the 'moderate' pollution ratings bracket, which requires a PM2.5 reading of anywhere between 12.1 to 35.4 μg/m³ to be classified as such.

This differs from the US AQI ratings system, with PM2.5 being recorded in micrograms per cubic meter. This 'moderate' reading is color coded as yellow, and was the only month of the year to break out of the optimal WHO target bracket of 10 μg/m³ or less.

When does Henderson have the cleanest air quality?

As mentioned, whilst the entire year save for September came in within the WHO's target bracket, there was a distinct period of time in which the PM2.5 count fell even further, indicating a very clean level of air quality.

These months with the cleanest level of air in Henderson were March through to July, all of which came in with very low PM2.5 readings. Respectively, they were 3.9 μg/m³, 3.7 μg/m³, 4 μg/m³, 5 μg/m³ and 4.2 μg/m³. These numbers on record show that April was the cleanest month of the year, with its very respectable reading of 3.7 μg/m³, making it three times lower than the most polluted month of the year and a time in which the air would be significantly more free from airborne particles, smoke, haze and other polluting elements.