Agriculture burning in Mexico impacting Valley; triple digits possible next week

Notice that haze in the air?

So do forecasters at the National Weather Service in Brownsville.

A meteorologist said Thursday that agricultural smoke from Mexico is causing moderate to unhealthy air quality through the weekend, possibly lingering into next week.

Andrei Evbuoma said later this evening and through Saturday that air quality will be unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Evbuoma said the air quality will have a particulate matter (PM) of around 2.5. PM, which is a term for a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets found in the air. Some particles might include dust, dirt, soot or smoke and if large or dark enough can be seen with the naked eye.

“Air quality is going to be not good for the next, at least, 48 hours and a lot of that is due to the fact that when you have a stagnant environment, like we are currently in, we have elevated humidity levels, we don’t have a lot of like moving of air,” he said. “Fuel from a car exhaust, or from a fire, can definitely decrease, pretty quickly, the air quality and that’s our case here.”

He said the Valley has a cap environment, or what meteorologists call an inversion.

“It’s like in the lower to mid levels of the atmosphere,” Evbuoma said. “We’re talking about like, you know, 5,000 feet above the surface, we have an inversion, or a cap, that’s in place. So basically, any kind of air that’s trying to escape outwards, it gets trapped underneath that.”

Agricultural burning takes place every year in Mexico to help enhance crops and grasses for pasture.

The unhealthy air quality can linger into next week and even longer depending on various factors such as how long the agricultural burning takes place.

“It’s kind of like a delayed effect. So it’s probably going to take some hours and days before the air quality improves, because, again, the air is very stagnated,” he said. “It’s almost like, equivalent to being in a traffic jam. You’re on the highway, it’s … bumper to bumper … that’s kind of how the atmosphere is right now, it’s not moving at all. So anything that is coming into the region, smoke from fires, that’s going to have an impact.”

On top of the unhealthy air quality, Evbuoma said temperatures are going to be in the triple digits next week with possible heat advisories.

Asked what recommendations he can give for people and sensitive groups, he replied, “If they have to be outside, wear a mask. Just like COVID protocol, I think the N-95 masks are the best. Protect yourself, don’t let this stuff get into your nostrils.”

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