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

Hanover County had the highest share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI) of 41 counties in 1991, at 24.6%. York County had the lowest, at 0%. The median was 1.9%. Source: EPA.

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Highest24.6Hanover County
Median1.941 counties

Map of counties, 1991

Amherst County: 7.4 %Arlington County: 14 %Augusta County: 2.6 %Buchanan County: 1.1 %Campbell County: 0 %Carroll County: 0 %Charles City County: 11.3 %Chesterfield County: 3.9 %Fairfax County: 21.1 %Fauquier County: 19.6 %Giles County: 8.3 %Hanover County: 24.6 %Henrico County: 17.9 %King William County: 0 %Loudoun County: 0 %Madison County: 11 %Prince Edward County: 5.5 %Prince William County: 15.6 %Roanoke County: 4.9 %Smyth County: 0 %Warren County: 9.2 %Wythe County: 6.1 %York County: 0 %Alexandria city: 4.1 %Bristol city: 0 %Charlottesville city: 0 %Chesapeake city: 0 %Covington city: 1.9 %Fairfax city: 11.5 %Fredericksburg city: 0 %Hampton city: 13.6 %Hopewell city: 0 %Lynchburg city: 0 %Martinsville city: 0 %Newport News city: 0 %Norfolk city: 0.3 %Portsmouth city: 0 %Richmond city: 0.3 %Roanoke city: 0 %Suffolk city: 17.9 %Winchester city: 0 %
  • Under 1.9
  • 1.9 to 7
  • 7 to 14
  • 14 and over
  • No data
%, 1991. 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, 1991

Hanover County: 24.6 %Hanover County24.6Fairfax County: 21.1 %Fairfax County21.1Fauquier County: 19.6 %Fauquier County19.6Henrico County: 17.9 %Henrico County17.9Suffolk city: 17.9 %Suffolk city17.9Prince William County: 15.6 %Prince William County15.6Arlington County: 14 %Arlington County14Hampton city: 13.6 %Hampton city13.6Fairfax city: 11.5 %Fairfax city11.5Charles City County: 11.3 %Charles City County11.3Madison County: 11 %Madison County11Warren County: 9.2 %Warren County9.2Giles County: 8.3 %Giles County8.3Amherst County: 7.4 %Amherst County7.4Wythe County: 6.1 %Wythe County6.1Prince Edward County: 5.5 %Prince Edward County5.5Roanoke County: 4.9 %Roanoke County4.9Alexandria city: 4.1 %Alexandria city4.1Chesterfield County: 3.9 %Chesterfield County3.9Augusta County: 2.6 %Augusta County2.6Covington city: 1.9 %Covington city1.9Buchanan County: 1.1 %Buchanan County1.1Norfolk city: 0.3 %Norfolk city0.3Richmond city: 0.3 %Richmond city0.3Bristol city: 0 %Bristol city0Campbell County: 0 %Campbell County0Carroll County: 0 %Carroll County0Charlottesville city: 0 %Charlottesville city0Chesapeake city: 0 %Chesapeake city0Fredericksburg city: 0 %Fredericksburg city0Hopewell city: 0 %Hopewell city0King William County: 0 %King William County0Loudoun County: 0 %Loudoun County0Lynchburg city: 0 %Lynchburg city0Martinsville city: 0 %Martinsville city0Newport News city: 0 %Newport News city0Portsmouth city: 0 %Portsmouth city0Roanoke city: 0 %Roanoke city0Smyth County: 0 %Smyth County0Winchester city: 0 %Winchester city0York County: 0 %York County0Hanover County: 24.6 %Hanover County24.6Fairfax County: 21.1 %Fairfax County21.1Fauquier County: 19.6 %Fauquier County19.6Henrico County: 17.9 %Henrico County17.9Suffolk city: 17.9 %Suffolk city17.9Prince William County: 15.6 %Prince William County15.6Arlington County: 14 %Arlington County14Hampton city: 13.6 %Hampton city13.6Fairfax city: 11.5 %Fairfax city11.5Charles City County: 11.3 %Charles City County11.3Madison County: 11 %Madison County11Warren County: 9.2 %Warren County9.2Giles County: 8.3 %Giles County8.3Amherst County: 7.4 %Amherst County7.4Wythe County: 6.1 %Wythe County6.1Prince Edward County: 5.5 %Prince Edward County5.5Roanoke County: 4.9 %Roanoke County4.9Alexandria city: 4.1 %Alexandria city4.1Chesterfield County: 3.9 %Chesterfield County3.9Augusta County: 2.6 %Augusta County2.6Covington city: 1.9 %Covington city1.9Buchanan County: 1.1 %Buchanan County1.1Norfolk city: 0.3 %Norfolk city0.3Richmond city: 0.3 %Richmond city0.3Bristol city: 0 %Bristol city0Campbell County: 0 %Campbell County0Carroll County: 0 %Carroll County0Charlottesville city: 0 %Charlottesville city0Chesapeake city: 0 %Chesapeake city0Fredericksburg city: 0 %Fredericksburg city0Hopewell city: 0 %Hopewell city0King William County: 0 %King William County0Loudoun County: 0 %Loudoun County0Lynchburg city: 0 %Lynchburg city0Martinsville city: 0 %Martinsville city0Newport News city: 0 %Newport News city0Portsmouth city: 0 %Portsmouth city0Roanoke city: 0 %Roanoke city0Smyth County: 0 %Smyth County0Winchester city: 0 %Winchester city0York County: 0 %York County0
%. Source: Invokely calculation with data from EPA. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCounties1991 (%)Change on 1990
1Hanover County24.6+12 pts
2Fairfax County21.1+9 pts
3Fauquier County19.6+12.5 pts
4Henrico County17.9+7.6 pts
4Suffolk city17.9+2.2 pts
6Prince William County15.6+15.6 pts
7Arlington County14+3.6 pts
8Hampton city13.6+6.6 pts
9Fairfax city11.5+5.2 pts
10Charles City County11.3-1.9 pts
11Madison County11+2.2 pts
12Warren County9.2+2.3 pts
13Giles County8.3-3.3 pts
14Amherst County7.4-2.4 pts
15Wythe County6.1-5.3 pts
16Prince Edward County5.5-1.8 pts
17Roanoke County4.9+2.4 pts
18Alexandria city4.10 pts
19Chesterfield County3.9-0.9 pts
20Augusta County2.6-1.9 pts
21Covington city1.9+1.9 pts
22Buchanan County1.1+1.1 pts
23Norfolk city0.3+0.3 pts
23Richmond city0.30 pts
25Bristol city00 pts
25Campbell County00 pts
25Carroll County00 pts
25Charlottesville city00 pts
25Chesapeake city00 pts
25Fredericksburg city00 pts
25Hopewell city00 pts
25King William County00 pts
25Loudoun County00 pts
25Lynchburg city00 pts
25Martinsville city00 pts
25Newport News city00 pts
25Portsmouth city00 pts
25Roanoke city00 pts
25Smyth County00 pts
25Winchester city00 pts
25York County00 pts

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. 19 counties with data in other periods have no value for 1991 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 Virginia by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 1991) [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 Virginia by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 1991. 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/virginia-counties?period=1991. 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 Virginia by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 1991. 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/virginia-counties?period=1991.

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 Virginia by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 1991 [Dataset]. Available at: https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/virginia-counties?period=1991 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{environmental_counties_in_virginia_by_1991,
  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 Virginia by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 1991}},
  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/virginia-counties?period=1991. 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 Virginia by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI), 1991
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/virginia-counties?period=1991
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/unhealthy-air-quality-days-share/virginia-counties?period=1991.
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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Rank Counties in Virginia by share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI) using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

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

Hanover County, with 24.6% in 1991, according to EPA.

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

York County, with 0% in 1991.

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. 19 counties have no value for 1991 and are not ranked.

Share of days unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse (US EPA AQI): other rankings

Counties in Virginia: more rankings