Wildfire smoke that has blanketed vast regions of Ontario this week will begin to dissipate overnight for many of the hardest-hit cities, as changes in wind patterns improve air quality.
Air quality will improve across southern Ontario late on June 16 and overnight into June 17, according to forecasts from Environment Canada and IQAir, a Swiss company that operates the world’s largest real-time air quality information platform. However, the extent of this change will vary by region.
University of Waterloo environmental engineering professor Dr. Rebecca Saari said wind patterns determine how far smoke travels and in which direction. Wildfires emit smoke particles and other harmful pollutants that can create haze or smog more than 1,000 kilometres away, she said in a press release….