ST PAUL, Minn — The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) is extending the current air quality alert for much of the state through Friday evening. The alert has also expanded to include all of Wisconsin.
Originally, MPCA officials said the alert would expire by 9 p.m. Thursday but that has been pushed to 9 p.m. Friday.
Nearly all of these warnings from the MPCA this spring and summer have been either extended or expanded -- or both.
This latest alert covers central and southern Minnesota, an area that includes the Twin Cities metro area. And as of Thursday afternoon, it expanded to all of Wisconsin.
Some of the bigger cities include Albert Lea, Alexandria, 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.
Because of poor air quality the Minnesota DNR says burning permits will not be issued or activated for the following counties.
Anoka, Benton, Blue Earth, Brown, Carver, Chippewa, Chisago, Dakota, Dodge, Faribault, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Hennepin, Houston, Isanti, Kanabec, Le Sueur, Martin, McLeod, Meeker, Mille Lacs, Mower, Nicollet, Olmstead, Pine, Ramsey, Rice, Scott, Sherburne, Sibley, Stearns, Steele, Wabasha, Waseca, Washington, Watonwan, Winona, and Wright.
DNR officials are discouraging campfires in those same counties.
The MPCA said the air quality is now in the "orange" category, which means it's unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Officials said our current weather of sunny skies, warm temperatures, and low humidity is creating an environment favorable for pollutants in the air. These conditions along with smoke from the Canadian wildfires have been a reoccurring problem this spring and summer.
People who need to be especially mindful of the alerts include:
- People who have asthma or other breathing conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- People who have heart disease, high blood pressure, or diabetes
- Pregnant people
- Children and older adults
People with increased exposure include:
- People of all ages who do longer or more vigorous physical activity outdoors
- People who work outdoors, especially workers who do heavy manual labor
- People who exercise or play sports outdoors, including children
- People who don't have air conditioning and need to keep windows open to stay cool
- People in housing not tight enough to keep unhealthy air out, or who do not have permanent shelter.
Earlier this month, Minnesota had the worst air quality in the country with an Air Quality Index (AQI) hovering around 175. That's the highest AQI recorded in the Twin Cities since at least 1980, when records began. The highest AQI ever recorded in the state is from Red Lake Nation on July 20, 2021, according to the MPCA. On that day, the AQI was 259 in that region.