McDowell County, North Carolina air quality history

Daily Air Quality Index summaries from EPA monitors in McDowell, North Carolina, 1990–2015.

65%

Good days in 2015

Median daily AQI, 2015

Days above 100 in 2015

337

Days with an AQI in 2015 (of 365)

In 2015, EPA reported a daily Air Quality Index (AQI) for McDowell, North Carolina on 337 days. 220 of those days (65%) were in the Good range, and the median daily AQI was 41. That median is lower than the typical monitored county in North Carolina (median 43.5 across 42 counties), and about the same as the typical monitored U.S. county (41). The main pollutant was fine particles (PM2.5) on 337 days. Across the years with fuller monitoring, the share of Good days rose: an average of 24% in 2000–2002 versus 65% in 2013–2015.

The most recent year with data for this county is 2015; EPA's files for 2016–2025 contain no row for it, which usually means its monitors stopped reporting.

Years with fewer than 120 monitored days (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004…) 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, 2015

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
Fine particles (PM2.5)	337	100%

Year-by-year data

Annual AQI summary by year
Year	Days with AQI	Good	Moderate	Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups	Unhealthy	Median AQI	90th pct.	Max AQI	Main pollutant
2015	337	220	117	0	0	41	57	89	PM2.5
2014	349	222	126	1	0	43	58	106	PM2.5
2013	347	230	117	0	0	41	58	72	PM2.5
2012	355	190	165	0	0	49	58	76	PM2.5
2011	357	164	193	0	0	52	67	85	PM2.5
2010	362	165	197	0	0	52	64	80	PM2.5
2009	364	184	180	0	0	50	63	81	PM2.5
2008	362	100	260	1	1	56	72	153	PM2.5
2007	329	58	267	4	0	60	85	139	PM2.5
2006	291	63	226	2	0	61	79	109	PM2.5
2005	121	22	97	2	0	60	84	110	PM2.5
2004	116	33	81	2	0	58	79	103	PM2.5
2003	105	35	68	2	0	57	74	111	PM2.5
2002	120	30	89	1	0	58	81	108	PM2.5
2001	123	31	89	3	0	58	81	114	PM2.5
2000	120	25	91	3	1	61	88	171	PM2.5
1999	116	29	87	0	0	60	87	97	PM2.5
1998	59	59	0	0	0	23	37	50	PM10
1997	61	60	1	0	0	23	39	54	PM10
1996	60	58	2	0	0	27	42	54	PM10
1995	61	60	1	0	0	25	36	51	PM10
1994	60	60	0	0	0	23	37	50	PM10
1993	50	48	2	0	0	24	39	62	PM10
1992	58	58	0	0	0	24	36	45	PM10
1991	55	53	2	0	0	26	41	73	PM10
1990	16	16	0	0	0	21	29	34	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 North Carolina with a similar median AQI in 2015

All monitored counties in North Carolina

Source: U.S. EPA AirData, “Annual AQI by County” files for 1990–2015 (EPA download page). EPA file dates: 2026-06-26. Imported into EnviroNearby November 5, 2026. How we use this data · Report a problem