Data / Rankings / Median Air Quality Index (US EPA) / Counties in Nebraska

Counties in Nebraska by median Air Quality Index (US EPA)

Douglas County had the highest median Air Quality Index (US EPA) of 14 counties in 2002, at 53. Thomas County had the lowest, at 14. The median was 33. Source: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest53Douglas County
Lowest14Thomas County
Median3314 counties

Map of counties, 2002

Cass County: 31 indexCedar County: 36 indexCherry County: 19 indexDawson County: 37 indexDeuel County: 27 indexDouglas County: 53 indexGarden County: 19 indexHall County: 33 indexLancaster County: 32 indexLincoln County: 33 indexSarpy County: 49 indexScotts Bluff County: 28 indexThomas County: 14 indexWashington County: 44 index
  • Under 24
  • 24 to 31
  • 31 to 33
  • 33 to 40
  • 40 and over
  • No data
index, 2002. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: EPA, EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All counties, 2002

Douglas County: 53 indexDouglas County53Sarpy County: 49 indexSarpy County49Washington County: 44 indexWashington County44Dawson County: 37 indexDawson County37Cedar County: 36 indexCedar County36Hall County: 33 indexHall County33Lincoln County: 33 indexLincoln County33Lancaster County: 32 indexLancaster County32Cass County: 31 indexCass County31Scotts Bluff County: 28 indexScotts Bluff County28Deuel County: 27 indexDeuel County27Cherry County: 19 indexCherry County19Garden County: 19 indexGarden County19Thomas County: 14 indexThomas County14Douglas County: 53 indexDouglas County53Sarpy County: 49 indexSarpy County49Washington County: 44 indexWashington County44Dawson County: 37 indexDawson County37Cedar County: 36 indexCedar County36Hall County: 33 indexHall County33Lincoln County: 33 indexLincoln County33Lancaster County: 32 indexLancaster County32Cass County: 31 indexCass County31Scotts Bluff County: 28 indexScotts Bluff County28Deuel County: 27 indexDeuel County27Cherry County: 19 indexCherry County19Garden County: 19 indexGarden County19Thomas County: 14 indexThomas County14
index. Source: EPA, EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties2002
index		Change on 2001
1Douglas County53-1
2Sarpy County49-2
3Washington County44-5
4Dawson County37+3
5Cedar County36-3
6Hall County33-10
6Lincoln County33-1
8Lancaster County32+1
9Cass County31+2
10Scotts Bluff County28-3
11Deuel County27-4
12Cherry County19-1
12Garden County19n/a
14Thomas County14n/a

Other periods

About this ranking

Median of the daily Air Quality Index (AQI) values of a US county over the days of the year with an AQI, from the EPA AirData annual summaries.

More on how it is measured
  • The daily county AQI is the highest AQI among the monitors and pollutants reported that day (ozone, PM2.5, PM10, carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide).
  • Lower is cleaner: 0 to 50 is good, 51 to 100 moderate and above 100 unhealthy for sensitive groups.

United States counties with air quality monitors only, about 1,000 of some 3,100 in recent years; a county without monitors has no value. The number of days with an AQI differs between counties because some monitors run only in the ozone season.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. 10 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2002 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2026). EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI (Counties in Nebraska by median Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2002) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual

MLA 9

EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI, Counties in Nebraska by median Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2002. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 13 July 2026, https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/median-air-quality-index/nebraska-counties?period=2002. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2026. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI. Counties in Nebraska by median Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2002. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/median-air-quality-index/nebraska-counties?period=2002.

Harvard

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2026) EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI, Counties in Nebraska by median Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2002 [Dataset]. Available at: https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/median-air-quality-index/nebraska-counties?period=2002 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{environmental_counties_in_nebraska_by_2002,
  author = {{U.S. Environmental Protection Agency}},
  title = {{EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI: Counties in Nebraska by median Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2002}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/median-air-quality-index/nebraska-counties?period=2002. Publisher attribution: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download\_files.html\#Annual. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
TI  - EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI: Counties in Nebraska by median Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2002
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/07/13
PB  - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/median-air-quality-index/nebraska-counties?period=2002
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/median-air-quality-index/nebraska-counties?period=2002.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which county has the highest median Air Quality Index (US EPA)?

Douglas County, with 53 in 2002, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Which county has the lowest median Air Quality Index (US EPA)?

Thomas County, with 14 in 2002.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA AirData annual AQI by county: median daily AQI. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 10 counties have no value for 2002 and are not ranked.

Median Air Quality Index (US EPA): other rankings

Counties in Nebraska: more rankings