Close
Search
Menu Menu
[gtranslate]

Why is New York City’s air so orange?

Credit: Casey Neistat
By
London, UK
0 comments
0 comments

New York City is currently shrouded in thick, orange smog, with stage performances cancelled and sports games postponed. It is the result of Canadian wildfires that have worsened due to the climate crisis.

Tens of millions are under air quality alert in the US, as smoke from Canadian wildfires travels southward and covers New York City.

The smog will persist for at least several days, leaving city goers in an orange, unhealthy haze of smoke and pollution. New York City now has the worst quality air in the world and many live events and sports games have been postponed. Jodie Comer had to stop her stage performance mid-show, saying that she ‘couldn’t breathe.’

Airports across the east coast have been dealing with delays due to limited visibility, and the US Federal Aviation Administration paused all flights inbound for New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport. Flights to LaGuardia Airport and Philadelphia International Airport were also suspended.

New Yorkers have been advised to stay inside or wear masks if they must venture out. Exposure to high levels of particle pollution can affect the lungs and heart, and authorities are particularly concerned about young children, older adults, and those living with lung diseases.

Canada’s wildfires have been moving into the US since May, and have affected Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, as well as New York. The smoke is expected to last at least a few days.

Fires raging in Quebec are to blame, which are large in scale and relatively close to Rhode Island. They follow on from wildfires in Nova Scotia. While fires are a common occurrence in Canada, US vice president Kamala Harris tweeted that they’re becoming more intense due to the climate crisis.

Protestors gathered at the White House on Thursday this week to voice their concerns over Biden’s recent Appalachia gas pipeline approval, undeterred by the wildfire smog. Air pollution is so bad that protestors have ordered N95 masks in order to go ahead with the march.

While New York City’s air will eventually clear up and return to normal, wildfires and natural disasters such as this will continue to become more common in the coming years and decades. The climate crisis will cause havoc to our ecosystems and planetary weather patterns that help keep everything balanced.

Unless action is taken, we could see more cities become shrouded in orange smoke more regularly.

Editor In Chief London, UK

I’m Charlie (He/Him), the Editor In Chief at Thred. I studied English at the University of Birmingham and as a music and gaming enthusiast, I’m a nerd for pop culture. You can find me curating playlists, designing article headline images, and sipping cider on a Thursday. Follow me on Twitter, LinkedIn and drop me some ideas/feedback via email.

Popular

Keep up with thred by signing up to our planet-positive newsletter!

More from thred.

Gisèle Pelicot’s powerful statement following landmark rape case
Credit: Reuters
People

Gisèle Pelicot’s powerful statement following landmark rape case

On Thursday, at a courthouse in Avignon, France, Dominique Pelicot was handed 20 years in prison for aggravated rape following over a decade of drugging and abusing his ex-wife, Gisèle Pelicot, and inviting over 50 men to rape her. Among the 50 co-defendants, 46 were convicted of rape, two of attempted rape, and two of sexual assault. The judge handed down sentences ranging from three and 15 years, with a...

By Birmingham, UK
UK prisons hosting a record number of activists this Christmas
Credit: Unsplash
People

UK prisons hosting a record number of activists this Christmas

As many as forty people between the ages of 22 and 58 will be spending Christmas in UK prisons. This record-breaking figure is attributed to the high number of arrests at climate change protests and demonstrations related to Israel’s actions in Gaza. This year, a record-breaking number of UK protestors will be spending Christmas behind bars. With forty activists between the ages of 22 to 58 locked up across Britain in...

By London, UK
Iran delays mandatory hijab law following global outrage
Credit: Flickr
People

Iran delays mandatory hijab law following global outrage

The strictest law in Iran's history concerning the compulsory veil was supposed to be enacted on December 13. In a hopeful turn of events, global outrage has forced the administration to hold off on the bill's implementation. Participating in digital activism in all possible ways - only to rarely witness positive outcomes - may make you wonder, ‘What's the point?’ Recent events in Iran, however, have given us renewed hope...

By Milan, Italy
What’s sun blocking and why are scientists warning against it?
Credit: Pexels
Planet

What’s sun blocking and why are scientists warning against it?

The controversial technology, which is intended to limit the effects of climate change by reflecting sunlight back into space, might not be such a great idea after all. As we know, hundreds of the world’s leading climate scientists expect our planet to breach the internationally agreed 1.5C threshold by 2027 and temperatures to rise to at least 2.5C above pre-industrial levels this century. This is due to emissions...

By London, UK
Accessibility