July 27 update:
The Ministry of Environment in collaboration with the Northern Health Authority has ended the Air Quality Advisory for Vanderhoof due to improved air quality which resulted from changing weather conditions.
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On Jan. 25, the Ministry of Environment in collaboration with Northern Health has issued an Air Quality Advisory for Vanderhoof because of high concentrations of fine particulate matter that are expected to persist until Jan. 26 afternoon or the following morning.
This advisory is in effect until further notice.
A warm front will pass over central B.C. in the evening of Jan. 26. In advance of this weather system dispersion of pollutants will be minimized, however once it pases air quality will improve.
The provincial air quality objective for PM2.5, is 25 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m3 ), averaged over 24 hours. 24-hour average PM2.5 concentrations are summarized below for communities along Hwy 16 as of January 25, 2017 at 15:00 PST:
Prince George: 19.5
Vanderhoof: 25.6
Burns Lake: 18.9
Houston: 8.3
Smithers: 12.1
Terrace: 15.7
Persons with chronic underlying medical conditions should postpone strenuous exercise until the advisory is lifted. Staying indoors and in air conditioned spaces helps to reduce fine particulate exposure. Exposure is particularly a concern for infants, the elderly and those who have diabetes, and lung or heart disease.
Real-time air quality observations and information regarding the health effects of air pollution can be found at http://www.bcairquality.ca.