Air quality

[bob vernon]

Oh no. Vernon's air quality is 63 micrograms per cubic metre and Kelowna's is only 39.

The air quality advisory for Vernon has been re-issued. It happens every year from about Winter Carnival time until roughly Easter. And virtually every news story on this issue that comes from a Vernon source bemoans the fact that the Vernon air quality is worse than Kelowna's. It isn't because the Vernon city and it's street sweepers are inept at clearing the winter's sand off the streets and Kelowna's are just smarter. It has everything to do with the shape of the valley and drainage of cold air overnight and the warming, instability, and venting during the day. Vernon's prevents the mixing layer from getting deep enough during the day to let dust vent out of the valley. And at night that darn Coldstream valley drains cold air into town to trap the dust at the lowest elevations. The valleys are shaped differently in Kelowna.

There are other places in the province with air quality about as bad as Vernon's Golden and Prince George come to mind. Prince George has several monitoring stations, some up on the bench and some in the valley bottom with those valley bottom sites having worse air quality. Golden has a massive amount of traffic to stir up the dust.

This dust will eventually be swept up and the mixing layer will get deeper with warmer weather and the air will get cleaner. Until next February when it will all happen again. Worse than Kelowna. Just like every year.

[Catsumi]

A swinery, complete with bike deconstruction evidence

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https://www.castanet.net/news/Vernon/41 ... -in-Vernon