Counties in New York by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI)

Putnam County had the highest share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI) of 36 counties in 2002, at 17.7%. Oswego County had the lowest, at 0%. The median was 6.2%. Source: EPA.

Highest17.7Putnam County

Lowest0Oswego County

Median6.236 counties

Map of counties, 2002

Under 2.5
2.5 to 4.8
4.8 to 6.2
6.2 to 7.1
7.1 to 10
10 and over
No data

%, 2002. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: Invokely calculation with data from EPA. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All counties, 2002

%. Source: Invokely calculation with data from EPA. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	Counties	2002 (%)	Change on 2001
1	Putnam County	17.7	+6.6 pts
2	Richmond County	16.2	+5.4 pts
3	Suffolk County	12.3	+5.5 pts
4	Jefferson County	11.7	-1 pts
5	Chautauqua County	11.3	+3.1 pts
6	Erie County	11	+3.1 pts
7	Westchester County	10	+3.6 pts
8	Rensselaer County	9.3	+9.3 pts
9	Essex County	9	+3.5 pts
10	Bronx County	7.9	+0.9 pts
11	Queens County	7.7	+1.7 pts
12	Monroe County	7.1	+3 pts
12	Onondaga County	7.1	+1.9 pts
14	Chemung County	6.9	+1.6 pts
15	Niagara County	6.8	-0.6 pts
16	Wayne County	6.6	+2.1 pts
17	Tompkins County	6.4	+0.3 pts
18	Madison County	6.2	+1.3 pts
19	Dutchess County	6.1	-0.8 pts
20	Albany County	6	+1.3 pts
21	Saratoga County	5.6	-0.6 pts
22	Oneida County	5.5	+2.5 pts
23	Ulster County	5.3	+0.1 pts
24	Orange County	4.8	-4.8 pts
25	Schenectady County	4.7	+0.3 pts
26	Broome County	4.5	+3.6 pts
27	Hamilton County	4.2	+1.2 pts
28	St. Lawrence County	3.4	+2.5 pts
29	Herkimer County	2.5	+0.5 pts
29	New York County	2.5	-9 pts
31	Steuben County	2.3	+0.2 pts
32	Kings County	0.8	0 pts
33	Nassau County	0.6	0 pts
34	Columbia County	0	0 pts
34	Franklin County	0	0 pts
34	Oswego County	0	n/a

Other periods

About this ranking

Days with a daily Air Quality Index above 100 (unhealthy for sensitive groups, unhealthy, very unhealthy or hazardous) as a percentage of the days of the year with an AQI in a US county. Calculated by Invokely from the day counts in the EPA AirData annual summaries; the counts are stored with each value.

Use the share rather than the number of days to compare counties, since the days with an AQI differ. 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. 3 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: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts. 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: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts (Counties in New York by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 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: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts, Counties in New York by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 2002. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 13 July 2026, https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/new-york-counties?period=2002. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2026. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts. Counties in New York by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 2002. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/new-york-counties?period=2002.

Harvard

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2026) EPA AirData annual AQI by county: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts, Counties in New York by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 2002 [Dataset]. Available at: https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/new-york-counties?period=2002 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{environmental_counties_in_new_york_2002,
  author = {{U.S. Environmental Protection Agency}},
  title = {{EPA AirData annual AQI by county: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts: Counties in New York by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 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/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/new-york-counties?period=2002. Publisher attribution: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts. 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: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts: Counties in New York by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 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/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/new-york-counties?period=2002
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/new-york-counties?period=2002.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts. 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 share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI)?

Putnam County, with 17.7% in 2002, according to EPA.

Which county has the lowest share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI)?

Oswego County, with 0% 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: days with an AQI above 100 as a share of days with an AQI, calculated with stored counts. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 3 counties have no value for 2002 and are not ranked.