Daily Air Quality Index summaries from EPA monitors in Lea, New Mexico, 1989–2025.
69%
Good days in 2025
44
Median daily AQI, 2025
8
Days above 100 in 2025
365
Days with an AQI in 2025 (of 365)
In 2025, EPA reported a daily Air Quality Index (AQI) for Lea, New Mexico on 365 days. 251 of those days (69%) were in the Good range, and the median daily AQI was 44. That median is about the same as the typical monitored county in New Mexico (median 44 across 13 counties), and higher than the typical monitored U.S. county (40). The main pollutant was ozone on 240 days. Across the years with fuller monitoring, the share of Good days fell: an average of 80% in 1999–2004 versus 68% in 2023–2025.
Years with fewer than 120 monitored days (1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2003…) 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.
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 daily AQI
90th-percentile daily AQI
Main pollutant by day, 2025
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.
Pollutant
Days as main pollutant
Share of monitored days
Ozone
240
66%
Fine particles (PM2.5)
117
32%
Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)
8
2%
Year-by-year data
Annual AQI summary by year
Year
Days with AQI
Good
Moderate
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
Unhealthy
Very Unhealthy
Hazardous
Median AQI
90th pct.
Max AQI
Main pollutant
2025
365
251
106
3
5
0
0
44
64
193
Ozone
2024
364
255
104
5
0
0
0
44
71
150
Ozone
2023
364
235
122
7
0
0
0
45
74
133
Ozone
2022
365
237
123
5
0
0
0
44
74
126
Ozone
2021
365
257
105
2
1
0
0
44
64
151
Ozone
2020
366
310
56
0
0
0
0
40
54
79
Ozone
2019
365
210
151
4
0
0
0
48
71
140
Ozone
2018
365
193
166
6
0
0
0
50
80
143
Ozone
2017
365
184
177
4
0
0
0
50
71
133
Ozone
2016
364
305
59
0
0
0
0
42
58
97
Ozone
2015
361
278
82
0
1
0
0
41
64
159
Ozone
2014
360
250
107
3
0
0
0
44
64
113
Ozone
2013
365
254
109
2
0
0
0
42
71
111
Ozone
2012
363
280
82
1
0
0
0
41
58
117
PM2.5
2011
360
225
128
7
0
0
0
46
71
120
Ozone
2010
365
326
39
0
0
0
0
37
51
68
Ozone
2009
365
307
55
2
1
0
0
38
54
151
Ozone
2008
362
255
107
0
0
0
0
43
64
97
Ozone
2007
365
266
99
0
0
0
0
44
58
97
Ozone
2006
361
247
107
7
0
0
0
44
80
129
Ozone
2005
365
253
104
8
0
0
0
44
68
143
Ozone
2004
199
166
33
0
0
0
0
35
55
77
PM2.5
2003
118
89
28
0
0
1
0
34
56
245
PM2.5
2002
118
100
18
0
0
0
0
33
54
74
PM2.5
2001
115
95
20
0
0
0
0
33
52
73
PM2.5
2000
131
106
25
0
0
0
0
34
55
63
PM2.5
1999
121
90
31
0
0
0
0
35
55
66
PM2.5
1998
59
58
1
0
0
0
0
17
26
51
PM10
1997
60
59
1
0
0
0
0
12
24
89
PM10
1996
59
59
0
0
0
0
0
16
23
38
PM10
1995
61
60
1
0
0
0
0
14
23
51
PM10
1994
52
52
0
0
0
0
0
18
31
46
PM10
1993
60
60
0
0
0
0
0
11
23
29
PM10
1992
59
59
0
0
0
0
0
15
25
35
PM10
1991
58
57
1
0
0
0
0
14
29
63
PM10
1990
59
59
0
0
0
0
0
15
26
31
PM10
1989
8
8
0
0
0
0
0
28
30
30
PM10
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 New Mexico with a similar median AQI in 2025
