EnviroNearby

Roanoke County, Virginia air quality history

Daily Air Quality Index summaries from EPA monitors in Roanoke, Virginia, 1981–2025.

84%
Good days in 2025
37
Median daily AQI, 2025
0
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 Roanoke, Virginia on 365 days. 306 of those days (84%) were in the Good range, and the median daily AQI was 37. That median is about the same as the typical monitored county in Virginia (median 37 across 25 counties), and lower than the typical monitored U.S. county (40). The main pollutant was fine particles (PM2.5) on 203 days. Across the years with fuller monitoring, the share of Good days rose: an average of 75% in 1981–1983 versus 79% in 2023–2025.

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%1981: Good 213 of 252 days1981: Moderate 32 of 252 days1981: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 7 of 252 days19811982: Good 257 of 364 days1982: Moderate 91 of 364 days1982: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 12 of 364 days1982: Unhealthy 4 of 364 days1983: Good 255 of 365 days1983: Moderate 78 of 365 days1983: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 28 of 365 days1983: Unhealthy 4 of 365 days1984: Good 280 of 361 days1984: Moderate 53 of 361 days1984: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 25 of 361 days1984: Unhealthy 3 of 361 days1985: Good 260 of 360 days1985: Moderate 76 of 360 days1985: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 24 of 360 days1986: Good 265 of 363 days1986: Moderate 75 of 363 days1986: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 21 of 363 days1986: Unhealthy 2 of 363 days19861987: Good 211 of 365 days1987: Moderate 106 of 365 days1987: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 37 of 365 days1987: Unhealthy 11 of 365 days1988: Good 244 of 366 days1988: Moderate 70 of 366 days1988: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 30 of 366 days1988: Unhealthy 20 of 366 days1988: Very Unhealthy 2 of 366 days1989: Good 274 of 365 days1989: Moderate 82 of 365 days1989: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 9 of 365 days1990: Good 291 of 365 days1990: Moderate 65 of 365 days1990: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 9 of 365 days1991: Good 280 of 365 days1991: Moderate 67 of 365 days1991: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 16 of 365 days1991: Unhealthy 2 of 365 days19911992: Good 293 of 365 days1992: Moderate 66 of 365 days1992: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 6 of 365 days1993: Good 269 of 363 days1993: Moderate 73 of 363 days1993: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 20 of 363 days1993: Unhealthy 1 of 363 days1994: Good 266 of 365 days1994: Moderate 77 of 365 days1994: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 20 of 365 days1994: Unhealthy 2 of 365 days1995: Good 263 of 363 days1995: Moderate 75 of 363 days1995: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 24 of 363 days1995: Unhealthy 1 of 363 days1996: Good 301 of 366 days1996: Moderate 59 of 366 days1996: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 6 of 366 days19961997: Good 257 of 364 days1997: Moderate 82 of 364 days1997: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 24 of 364 days1997: Unhealthy 1 of 364 days1998: Good 242 of 365 days1998: Moderate 66 of 365 days1998: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 45 of 365 days1998: Unhealthy 11 of 365 days1998: Very Unhealthy 1 of 365 days1999: Good 275 of 353 days1999: Moderate 45 of 353 days1999: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 27 of 353 days1999: Unhealthy 6 of 353 days2000: Good 279 of 366 days2000: Moderate 68 of 366 days2000: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 17 of 366 days2000: Unhealthy 2 of 366 days2001: Good 255 of 365 days2001: Moderate 86 of 365 days2001: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 19 of 365 days2001: Unhealthy 5 of 365 days20012002: Good 266 of 365 days2002: Moderate 62 of 365 days2002: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 33 of 365 days2002: Unhealthy 4 of 365 days2003: Good 310 of 364 days2003: Moderate 48 of 364 days2003: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 5 of 364 days2003: Unhealthy 1 of 364 days2004: Good 316 of 366 days2004: Moderate 46 of 366 days2004: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 4 of 366 days2005: Good 257 of 335 days2005: Moderate 62 of 335 days2005: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 16 of 335 days2006: Good 282 of 365 days2006: Moderate 69 of 365 days2006: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 14 of 365 days20062007: Good 267 of 336 days2007: Moderate 61 of 336 days2007: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 7 of 336 days2007: Unhealthy 1 of 336 days2008: Good 298 of 363 days2008: Moderate 60 of 363 days2008: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 5 of 363 days2009: Good 336 of 365 days2009: Moderate 29 of 365 days2010: Good 283 of 358 days2010: Moderate 69 of 358 days2010: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 6 of 358 days2011: Good 292 of 365 days2011: Moderate 72 of 365 days2011: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 1 of 365 days20112012: Good 310 of 366 days2012: Moderate 53 of 366 days2012: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 3 of 366 days2013: Good 287 of 363 days2013: Moderate 76 of 363 days2014: Good 231 of 365 days2014: Moderate 133 of 365 days2014: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 1 of 365 days2015: Good 242 of 365 days2015: Moderate 123 of 365 days2016: Good 276 of 366 days2016: Moderate 90 of 366 days20162017: Good 276 of 365 days2017: Moderate 89 of 365 days2018: Good 265 of 365 days2018: Moderate 100 of 365 days2019: Good 286 of 365 days2019: Moderate 79 of 365 days2020: Good 277 of 366 days2020: Moderate 89 of 366 days2021: Good 246 of 365 days2021: Moderate 118 of 365 days2021: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 1 of 365 days20212022: Good 257 of 365 days2022: Moderate 108 of 365 days2023: Good 251 of 365 days2023: Moderate 110 of 365 days2023: Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 3 of 365 days2023: Unhealthy 1 of 365 days2024: Good 306 of 366 days2024: Moderate 60 of 366 days2025: Good 306 of 365 days2025: Moderate 59 of 365 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 year0501001501981: 90th percentile AQI 681982: 90th percentile AQI 741983: 90th percentile AQI 971984: 90th percentile AQI 871985: 90th percentile AQI 901986: 90th percentile AQI 871987: 90th percentile AQI 1121988: 90th percentile AQI 1151989: 90th percentile AQI 741990: 90th percentile AQI 711991: 90th percentile AQI 801992: 90th percentile AQI 741993: 90th percentile AQI 841994: 90th percentile AQI 901995: 90th percentile AQI 871996: 90th percentile AQI 671997: 90th percentile AQI 971998: 90th percentile AQI 1191999: 90th percentile AQI 972000: 90th percentile AQI 872001: 90th percentile AQI 902002: 90th percentile AQI 1012003: 90th percentile AQI 642004: 90th percentile AQI 582005: 90th percentile AQI 772006: 90th percentile AQI 802007: 90th percentile AQI 742008: 90th percentile AQI 642009: 90th percentile AQI 492010: 90th percentile AQI 712011: 90th percentile AQI 642012: 90th percentile AQI 612013: 90th percentile AQI 552014: 90th percentile AQI 602015: 90th percentile AQI 602016: 90th percentile AQI 572017: 90th percentile AQI 552018: 90th percentile AQI 572019: 90th percentile AQI 552020: 90th percentile AQI 552021: 90th percentile AQI 612022: 90th percentile AQI 582023: 90th percentile AQI 622024: 90th percentile AQI 542025: 90th percentile AQI 551981: Median AQI 331982: Median AQI 421983: Median AQI 401984: Median AQI 411985: Median AQI 431986: Median AQI 401987: Median AQI 471988: Median AQI 421989: Median AQI 391990: Median AQI 391991: Median AQI 381992: Median AQI 371993: Median AQI 401994: Median AQI 401995: Median AQI 361996: Median AQI 361997: Median AQI 391998: Median AQI 421999: Median AQI 342000: Median AQI 372001: Median AQI 392002: Median AQI 372003: Median AQI 342004: Median AQI 362005: Median AQI 362006: Median AQI 362007: Median AQI 362008: Median AQI 342009: Median AQI 312010: Median AQI 372011: Median AQI 342012: Median AQI 332013: Median AQI 372014: Median AQI 452015: Median AQI 432016: Median AQI 412017: Median AQI 422018: Median AQI 412019: Median AQI 422020: Median AQI 402021: Median AQI 432022: Median AQI 422023: Median AQI 432024: Median AQI 392025: Median AQI 371981198619911996200120062011201620212025
  • 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
Fine particles (PM2.5)20356%
Ozone15843%
Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)41%

Year-by-year data

Annual AQI summary by year
YearDays with AQIGoodModerateUnhealthy for Sensitive GroupsUnhealthyVery UnhealthyHazardousMedian AQI90th pct.Max AQIMain pollutant
2025365306590000375580PM2.5
2024366306600000395468PM2.5
202336525111031004362158PM2.5
20223652571080000425880PM2.5
202136524611810004361106PM2.5
2020366277890000405572PM2.5
2019365286790000425571PM2.5
20183652651000000415787PM2.5
2017365276890000425580PM2.5
20163662769000004157100PM2.5
20153652421230000436090PM2.5
201436523113310004560108PM2.5
2013363287760000375580PM2.5
20123663105330003361122Ozone
20113652927210003464112Ozone
20103582836960003771119Ozone
2009365336290000314993Ozone
20083632986050003464136Ozone
20073362676171003674151Ozone
200636528269140003680143Ozone
200533525762160003677129Ozone
20043663164640003658126Ozone
20033643104851003464164Ozone
2002365266623340037101185Ozone
200136525586195003990174Ozone
200036627968172003787177Ozone
199935327545276003497185NO2
19983652426645111042119206Ozone
199736425782241003997156Ozone
19963663015960003667119Ozone
199536326375241003687154Ozone
199436526677202004090172Ozone
199336326973201004084166Ozone
19923652936660003774140Ozone
199136528067162003880154Ozone
19903652916590003971129Ozone
19893652748290003974133Ozone
19883662447030202042115217Ozone
198736521110637110047112192Ozone
198636326575212004087166Ozone
198536026076240004390150Ozone
198436128053253004187156Ozone
198336525578284004097161Ozone
198236425791124004274174Ozone
19812522133270003368150NO2

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 Virginia with a similar median AQI in 2025

All monitored counties in Virginia

Source: U.S. EPA AirData, “Annual AQI by County” files for 1981–2025 (EPA download page). EPA file dates: 2026-06-26. Imported into EnviroNearby November 5, 2026. How we use this data · Report a problem