Air Quality Health Index (Canada)
| Formation | 2005 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada |
| Catherine McKenna | |
| Website | http://www.airhealth.ca http://www.coteairsante.ca |
The Air Quality Health Index or (AQHI) is a scale designed in Canada to help understand the impact of air quality on health. It is a health protection tool used to make decisions to reduce short-term exposure to air pollution by adjusting activity levels during increased levels of air pollution. The Air Quality Health Index also provides advice on how to improve air quality by proposing behavioral change to reduce the environmental footprint. This index pays particular attention to people who are sensitive to air pollution. It provides them with advice on how to protect their health during air quality levels associated with low, moderate, high and very high health risks.
Air quality in Canada has been historically been reported by the USA's Air Quality Index in various provinces. Significantly, AQI values reflect air quality management objectives, which are based on the lowest achievable emissions rate, and not exclusively concern for human health. The AQHI was created with a different goal - to report on the specific health risks posed by air pollution. As such, the AQHI represents a paradigm shift in communicating air quality information to the public.
The Air Quality Health Index or "AQHI" is a federal program jointly coordinated by Health Canada and Environment Canada. However, the AQHI program would not be possible without the commitment and support of the provinces, municipalities and NGOs. From air quality monitoring to health risk communication and community engagement, local partners are responsible for the vast majority of work related to AQHI implementation.
The AQHI is being rolled out across Canada and replacing the AQI as the public face of air quality information.
Originally launched as a pilot project in the British Columbia Interior and Nova Scotia in 2005, it is currently implemented in 103 communities across Canada.
The Air Quality Health Index provides a number from 1 to 10+ to indicate the level of health risk associated with local air quality. Occasionally, when the amount of air pollution is abnormally high, the number may exceed 10. The AQHI provides a local air quality current value as well as a local air quality maximums forecast for today, tonight and tomorrow and provides associated health advice.
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