EnviroNearby

Avery County, North Carolina air quality history

Daily Air Quality Index summaries from EPA monitors in Avery, North Carolina, 1990–2025.

92%
Good days in 2025
38
Median daily AQI, 2025
0
Days above 100 in 2025
258
Days with an AQI in 2025 (of 365)

In 2025, EPA reported a daily Air Quality Index (AQI) for Avery, North Carolina on 258 days. 238 of those days (92%) were in the Good range, and the median daily AQI was 38. That median is about the same as the typical monitored county in North Carolina (median 39 across 33 counties), and about the same as the typical monitored U.S. county (40). The main pollutant was ozone on 220 days. Across the years with fuller monitoring, the share of Good days rose: an average of 65% in 1990–1992 versus 90% in 2023–2025.

EPA did not report an AQI for every day of 2025 here (258 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.

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%1990: Good 198 of 348 days1990: Moderate 115 of 348 days1990: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 30 of 348 days1990: Unhealthy 5 of 348 days19901991: Good 225 of 358 days1991: Moderate 113 of 358 days1991: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 19 of 358 days1991: Unhealthy 1 of 358 days1992: Good 266 of 358 days1992: Moderate 82 of 358 days1992: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 9 of 358 days1992: Unhealthy 1 of 358 days1993: Good 231 of 354 days1993: Moderate 104 of 354 days1993: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 17 of 354 days1993: Unhealthy 2 of 354 days1994: Good 266 of 361 days1994: Moderate 82 of 361 days1994: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 12 of 361 days1994: Unhealthy 1 of 361 days1995: Good 148 of 271 days1995: Moderate 99 of 271 days1995: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 24 of 271 days19951996: Good 143 of 212 days1996: Moderate 58 of 212 days1996: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 11 of 212 days1997: Good 235 of 359 days1997: Moderate 108 of 359 days1997: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 16 of 359 days1998: Good 205 of 360 days1998: Moderate 117 of 360 days1998: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 32 of 360 days1998: Unhealthy 6 of 360 days1999: Good 194 of 363 days1999: Moderate 127 of 363 days1999: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 37 of 363 days1999: Unhealthy 5 of 363 days2000: Good 207 of 365 days2000: Moderate 121 of 365 days2000: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 34 of 365 days2000: Unhealthy 3 of 365 days20002001: Good 226 of 364 days2001: Moderate 121 of 364 days2001: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 16 of 364 days2001: Unhealthy 1 of 364 days2002: Good 232 of 359 days2002: Moderate 97 of 359 days2002: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 24 of 359 days2002: Unhealthy 6 of 359 days2003: Good 247 of 365 days2003: Moderate 106 of 365 days2003: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 12 of 365 days2004: Good 251 of 364 days2004: Moderate 110 of 364 days2004: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 3 of 364 days2005: Good 229 of 355 days2005: Moderate 113 of 355 days2005: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 13 of 355 days20052006: Good 240 of 363 days2006: Moderate 118 of 363 days2006: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 5 of 363 days2007: Good 223 of 361 days2007: Moderate 131 of 361 days2007: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 7 of 361 days2008: Good 248 of 359 days2008: Moderate 107 of 359 days2008: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 4 of 359 days2009: Good 303 of 362 days2009: Moderate 59 of 362 days2010: Good 266 of 362 days2010: Moderate 89 of 362 days2010: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 7 of 362 days20102011: Good 286 of 362 days2011: Moderate 76 of 362 days2012: Good 307 of 364 days2012: Moderate 54 of 364 days2012: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 3 of 364 days2013: Good 321 of 363 days2013: Moderate 42 of 363 days2014: Good 318 of 363 days2014: Moderate 45 of 363 days2015: Good 306 of 353 days2015: Moderate 47 of 353 days20152016: Good 308 of 358 days2016: Moderate 46 of 358 days2016: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 4 of 358 days2017: Good 327 of 360 days2017: Moderate 33 of 360 days2018: Good 319 of 357 days2018: Moderate 38 of 357 days2019: Good 333 of 363 days2019: Moderate 30 of 363 days2020: Good 350 of 366 days2020: Moderate 16 of 366 days20202021: Good 331 of 364 days2021: Moderate 33 of 364 days2022: Good 297 of 321 days2022: Moderate 24 of 321 days2023: Good 246 of 283 days2023: Moderate 37 of 283 days2024: Good 222 of 245 days2024: Moderate 23 of 245 days2025: Good 238 of 258 days2025: Moderate 20 of 258 days2025
  • 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 year0501001501990: 90th percentile AQI 1011991: 90th percentile AQI 871992: 90th percentile AQI 771993: 90th percentile AQI 871994: 90th percentile AQI 771995: 90th percentile AQI 1001996: 90th percentile AQI 841997: 90th percentile AQI 841998: 90th percentile AQI 1051999: 90th percentile AQI 1052000: 90th percentile AQI 1012001: 90th percentile AQI 902002: 90th percentile AQI 902003: 90th percentile AQI 772004: 90th percentile AQI 752005: 90th percentile AQI 802006: 90th percentile AQI 802007: 90th percentile AQI 802008: 90th percentile AQI 672009: 90th percentile AQI 542010: 90th percentile AQI 712011: 90th percentile AQI 582012: 90th percentile AQI 582013: 90th percentile AQI 512014: 90th percentile AQI 522015: 90th percentile AQI 542016: 90th percentile AQI 532017: 90th percentile AQI 502018: 90th percentile AQI 512019: 90th percentile AQI 492020: 90th percentile AQI 472021: 90th percentile AQI 502022: 90th percentile AQI 482023: 90th percentile AQI 532024: 90th percentile AQI 502025: 90th percentile AQI 491990: Median AQI 481991: Median AQI 461992: Median AQI 441993: Median AQI 451994: Median AQI 431995: Median AQI 491996: Median AQI 451997: Median AQI 451998: Median AQI 481999: Median AQI 492000: Median AQI 482001: Median AQI 462002: Median AQI 462003: Median AQI 442004: Median AQI 442005: Median AQI 442006: Median AQI 452007: Median AQI 462008: Median AQI 442009: Median AQI 402010: Median AQI 442011: Median AQI 432012: Median AQI 422013: Median AQI 402014: Median AQI 402015: Median AQI 412016: Median AQI 422017: Median AQI 402018: Median AQI 382019: Median AQI 402020: Median AQI 382021: Median AQI 402022: Median AQI 382023: Median AQI 392024: Median AQI 382025: Median AQI 3819901995200020052010201520202025
  • 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.

PollutantDays as main pollutantShare of monitored days
Ozone22085%
Fine particles (PM2.5)3815%

Year-by-year data

Annual AQI summary by year
YearDays with AQIGoodModerateUnhealthy for Sensitive GroupsUnhealthyVery UnhealthyHazardousMedian AQI90th pct.Max AQIMain pollutant
2025258238200000384990Ozone
2024245222230000385090Ozone
2023283246370000395398Ozone
2022321297240000384877Ozone
2021364331330000405074Ozone
2020366350160000384780Ozone
2019363333300000404977Ozone
2018357319380000385187Ozone
2017360327330000405093Ozone
20163583084640004253149Ozone
2015353306470000415490Ozone
2014363318450000405290Ozone
2013363321420000405193Ozone
20123643075430004258143Ozone
2011362286760000435884Ozone
20103622668970004471122Ozone
2009362303590000405493Ozone
200835924810740004467129Ozone
200736122313170004680150Ozone
200636324011850004580112Ozone
2005355229113130004480143Ozone
200436425111030004475112Ozone
2003365247106120004477150Ozone
200235923297246004690164Ozone
2001364226121161004690154Ozone
20003652071213430048101172Ozone
19993631941273750049105187Ozone
19983602051173260048105187Ozone
1997359235108160004584140Ozone
199621214358110004584143Ozone
1995271148992400049100143Ozone
199436126682121004377185Ozone
1993354231104172004587174Ozone
19923582668291004477159Ozone
1991358225113191004687151Ozone
19903481981153050048101172Ozone

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 North Carolina with a similar median AQI in 2025

All monitored counties in North Carolina

Source: U.S. EPA AirData, “Annual AQI by County” files for 1990–2025 (EPA download page). EPA file dates: 2026-06-26. Imported into EnviroNearby November 5, 2026. How we use this data · Report a problem