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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, January 4, 2002

Liliha air quality worse than New Year's 2001

By Mike Gordon
Advertiser Staff Writer

Even the experts find it a bit confusing.

Fireworks on New Year's Eve made Hawai'i skies smokier than they were last year in four out of six places monitored by state health officials. But in the end, federal clean-air standards were not violated.

"It's a little confounding," said Gary Gill, state deputy health director.

Federal air quality standards are based on a 24-hour period and the average must be less than 150 micrograms per cubic meter, Gill said.

The Department of Health monitors air quality at its offices on Punchbowl Street, in Liliha, Pearl City and Kapolei and on Maui, in Kihei and Pa'ia.

Particulates in the air were at lower levels Monday night in Kihei and in Pearl City, which last year was the only Hawai'i location to violate federal standards.

But at the other areas monitored — and especially on O'ahu — smoke from fireworks left the air three and four times as dense during the first hour of the new year. They also were worse than they were last year.

"And Liliha was king," Gill said with a shrug.

By 1 a.m. at 1486 'A'ala Street in Liliha, the air was thick enough to chew: 1,111 micrograms per cubic meter.

"This New Year's in Liliha, the air was worse than the worst day in Los Angeles, the worst day in New York, in Chicago or Denver or Houston," Gill said.

But Liliha's 24-hour average was 116 micrograms per cubic meter, far below federal standards.

"Go figure," Gill said.

New Year's Eve in Hawai'i produces nearly the same graph each year with "a mountain of smoke" spiking the statistics from about 9 p.m. Dec. 31 to 3 a.m. Jan. 1., Gill said.

But it's a one-day problem.

Annually, the state has some of the best air in the nation, Gill said.

"We create our own worst day," Gill said. "Our yearly average is the best in the nation. Our air is great except for the one day we try to kill ourselves."

Gill said other areas were "certainly worse" than Liliha, such as valleys or similar places where smoke was more contained.

Conditions depend heavily on wind conditions and the amount of smoke being produced. This year, winds were relatively light, Gill said.

Police and fire officials believe new permit laws helped reduce noise, injuries and smoke this year. A depressed economy and a reluctance to use fireworks after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks also contributed the levels.

Permits, however, are not needed for a wide array of smoke-producing fireworks.

Douglas Yee, president of the American Lung Association's Hawai'i chapter, called the air quality statistics "kinda strange."

Yee drove around O'ahu on New Year's Eve. Some areas had pristine air and others were shrouded in haze.

"I think it does indicate that there is a bad situation here," he said. "There is still a problem here."

Reach Mike Gordon at mgordon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8012.