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Air Quality Index Color Code Guide

Air Quality

Weather Conditions Recommended Actions Health Effects
Good

AQI: 0-50

(Green)
  • Cool summer temperatures
  • Windy conditions
  • Significant cloud cover
  • Heavy or steady precipitation
  • No health effects are expected.
Moderate

AQI: 51-100

(Yellow)
  • Keep cars and boats tuned up
  • Use environmentally safe paints and cleaning products
  • Conserve electricity-set A/C to highest comfortable level
  • Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting prolonged outdoor exertion.
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups

AQI: 101-150

(Orange)
  • Temperatures in the 80's and 90's
  • Light winds
  • Mostly sunny skies
  • Slight chance of afternoon thunderstorms
  • Active children and adults, and people with respiratory disease, such as asthma, should limit prolonged outdoor exertion.
Unhealthy

AQI: 151-200

(Red)
  • Hot, hazy, and humid
  • Stagnant air
  • Sunny skies
  • Little chance of precipitation
  • Active children and adults, and people with respiratory disease such as asthma, should avoid prolonged outdoor exertion; everyone else, especially children, should limit prolonged outdoor exertion.
Very Unhealthy

AQI: 201-300

(Purple)
  • Hot and very hazy
  • Extremely stagnant air
  • Sunny skies
  • No precipitation
  • Active children and adults, and people with respiratory disease such as asthma, should avoid all outdoor exertion; everyone else, especially children, should limit outdoor exertion.
AQI refers to the Air Quality Index. An AQI Calculation Table is available online
to convert raw ozone concentrations to the Air Quality Index.

The weather conditions listed above are common weather types associated
with the respective air quality levels. A combination of part or of all
these weather conditions could lead to a certain level of observed air quality.

This index is derived from the NCDENR DAQ data

CleanAir_logo_c.gif (3756 bytes) CLEAN AIR CAMPAIGN
339 New Leicester Highway, Suite 140, Asheville  NC28806
Tel: (828) 251-6000   Fax:(828) 251-6353

e-mail: cleanair@landofsky.org