Canada Has the Worst Air in the World, Caused by Forest Fires

Due to ongoing forest fires in Canada, air quality in Montreal was described as the worst in the world on Saturday, according to data from Swiss company IQAir.

According to media reports, wind directions caused smoke from forest fires in southern Quebec, as well as from northern Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, to reach Montreal.

IQAir, a global air pollution data center, reported Saturday morning that Montreal had the most polluted air. By afternoon, Montreal had dropped to second place, behind Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

This morning, Montreal's air pollution index was 191, while a Swiss company's scale indicates that a reading of 151-200 is considered "unhealthy." By afternoon, Montreal's reading was 175.

According to data from the Canadian Ministry of Environment, air quality in Montreal was rated "10" on Saturday, meaning high risk, and the situation is expected to begin to improve overnight from Saturday to Sunday.

In Canada, firefighters are currently battling 546 forest fires, French-language public broadcaster Radio-Canada reported.

In mid-July, Toronto, Canada's largest city, also ranked second on the list of cities with the most air pollution in the world due to forest fires. On July 6, Toronto and Montreal were among the top five cities with the most air pollution.

From Toronto Anna Lach (PAP)

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