EnviroNearby

Whitley County, Kentucky air quality history

Daily Air Quality Index summaries from EPA monitors in Whitley, Kentucky, 1991–2002.

100%
Good days in 2002
15
Median daily AQI, 2002
0
Days above 100 in 2002
14
Days with an AQI in 2002 (of 365)

In 2002, EPA reported a daily Air Quality Index (AQI) for Whitley, Kentucky on 14 days. 14 of those days (100%) were in the Good range, and the median daily AQI was 15. That median is lower than the typical monitored county in Kentucky (median 44 across 32 counties), and lower than the typical monitored U.S. county (44). The main pollutant was coarse particles (PM10) on 14 days.

EPA did not report an AQI for every day of 2002 here (14 of 365 days). Figures describe monitored days only; seasonal monitoring (for example, ozone measured only in warmer months) can make a county look cleaner or dirtier than a full-year record would.

The most recent year with data for this county is 2002; EPA's files for 2003–2025 contain no row for it, which usually means its monitors stopped reporting.

Years with fewer than 120 monitored days (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002…) are shown in the table but left out of comparisons and trend statements.

How the days broke down each year

Each bar is one year. The colored segments show the share of monitored days that fell in each AQI category.

Share of monitored days in each AQI category, by year0%25%50%75%100%1991: Good 37 of 37 days19911992: Good 59 of 59 days19921993: Good 59 of 59 days19931994: Good 55 of 57 days1994: Moderate 2 of 57 days19941995: Good 53 of 57 days1995: Moderate 4 of 57 days19951996: Good 58 of 58 days19961997: Good 59 of 60 days1997: Moderate 1 of 60 days19971998: Good 57 of 57 days19981999: Good 56 of 57 days1999: Moderate 1 of 57 days19992000: Good 56 of 59 days2000: Moderate 3 of 59 days20002001: Good 59 of 59 days20012002: Good 14 of 14 days2002
  • Good
  • Moderate
  • Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
  • Unhealthy
  • Very Unhealthy
  • Hazardous

Typical and high-end AQI over time

The median is the middle day of the year. The 90th percentile is the level that only the highest 10% of days exceeded.

Median and 90th-percentile daily AQI, by year0501001991: 90th percentile AQI 421992: 90th percentile AQI 361993: 90th percentile AQI 371994: 90th percentile AQI 371995: 90th percentile AQI 441996: 90th percentile AQI 291997: 90th percentile AQI 361998: 90th percentile AQI 331999: 90th percentile AQI 382000: 90th percentile AQI 492001: 90th percentile AQI 322002: 90th percentile AQI 271991: Median AQI 281992: Median AQI 211993: Median AQI 201994: Median AQI 231995: Median AQI 201996: Median AQI 181997: Median AQI 221998: Median AQI 201999: Median AQI 232000: Median AQI 202001: Median AQI 192002: Median AQI 15199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002
  • Median daily AQI
  • 90th-percentile daily AQI

Main pollutant by day, 2002

On each monitored day, the AQI reflects whichever measured pollutant had the highest index. This counts how many days each pollutant set the AQI. A pollutant that was not measured here cannot appear.

PollutantDays as main pollutantShare of monitored days
Coarse particles (PM10)14100%

Year-by-year data

Annual AQI summary by year
YearDays with AQIGoodModerateUnhealthy for Sensitive GroupsUnhealthyVery UnhealthyHazardousMedian AQI90th pct.Max AQIMain pollutant
2002141400000152733PM10
2001595900000193241PM10
2000595630000204989PM10
1999575610000233863PM10
1998575700000203343PM10
1997605910000223652PM10
1996585800000182942PM10
1995575340000204462PM10
1994575520000233759PM10
1993595900000203750PM10
1992595900000213643PM10
1991373700000284247PM10

What this data can and can’t tell you

It is a county-level summary. EPA reports one AQI per day for the county, based on the monitors operating there. Air at a particular street, school or home can differ, especially near roads, industry or wildfire smoke.

It is not a health assessment. The AQI is EPA’s scale for communicating daily air quality. A county’s history can’t tell you what the health risk is for any particular person. For daily conditions and health guidance, see AirNow.

Rules change over time. EPA has revised AQI breakpoints, most recently for fine particles in 2024, so some year-to-year change can reflect the scale rather than the air.

Counties in Kentucky with a similar median AQI in 2002

All monitored counties in Kentucky

Source: U.S. EPA AirData, “Annual AQI by County” files for 1991–2002 (EPA download page). EPA file dates: 2026-06-26. Imported into EnviroNearby November 5, 2026. How we use this data · Report a problem