What's at stake?
Pollution was still bad last night -- just a little bit better than last year.
San Joaquin Valley cities saw a surprising decline in fireworks-related air pollution this Fourth of July from recent years, despite record heat and dry grasses fueling concerns about secondary fires.
The valley’s air benefitted from “thermally driven northwesterly winds,” according to Valley Air chief spokesperson Jaime Holt, in an email.
However, the improved numbers still exceed the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) daily limit for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure by over 300 percent – and Holt also noted that “Valley peak hourly PM2.5 concentrations from July 4, 2024, were the third highest for the past five years since 2020.”
In Fresno, air quality measurements from the Valley Air District reached 65 micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m³) on Independence Day, corresponding to an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 157. Visalia, typically one of the worst cities for air pollution during the holiday, saw levels rise to only 110 μg/m³, an AQI of 190. These numbers represent a significant decrease from previous years: Visalia recorded 260 μg/m³ in 2022, and Fresno recorded 160 μg/m³ in 2023.
Bakersfield, however, bucked the trend. The city saw its pollution levels quadruple this year to a staggering 276 μg/m³, 788 percent of the EPA’s limit, with an AQI hitting 400.
Despite Fresno’s relative decrease in pollution, fireworks shows were still as dangerous as ever, according to the Fresno Fire Department. The department responded to 286 incidents, 139 of which were fires.
“It was a busy night,” said Josh Sellers, a spokesperson for the Fresno Fire Department. “It was typical for the other Fourth of Julys we have had in the past. At one point, we had to stop responding to medical aid so we could handle the fire calls we had coming in.” He added, “The majority of those fires were firework-related.”
In Fresno, the drop in pollution levels was particularly notable in northeast Fresno, where last year’s fireworks caused air quality to deteriorate to levels rivaling the wintertime daily pollution in South Fresno, an area with some of the worst air quality in the nation.
In recent years, the air district has had success in boosting turnout for light and drone shows, which replace fireworks for entertainment on the Fourth of July.
Last year, firework shows in some of Clovis’ newest subdivisions caused air pollution to hit 300.2 μg/m³, according to Purple Air, with an AQI of 450. This year, it only reached 140 μg/m³, an AQI of 215.
