Fireworks are awful for air quality. It's the only time of year that airborne phosphorous levels become a problem.
Los Angeles suffers particularly:“Fine particulate matter levels on July 4 and July 5 are typically among the worst days of the year in the South Coast Air Basin,” the advisory said. “The smoke and combustion products from fireworks add to the fine particles already present in the basin that are primarily caused by motor vehicles, as well as fugitive dust and industrial emissions.”
...The aftermath from this year’s fireworks doesn’t yet appear quite as bad as in 2020 or 2021, said Scott Epstein, air quality assessment program supervisor at the AQMD. The effect of fireworks on air quality is typically a function of the intensity or number of fireworks, as well as the weather on July 5, he said.
“It looks a little bit cleaner than last year, but I hesitate to use the word ‘clean,’ because it’s not clean,” Epstein said. He said wildfires are the only other events that can compromise air quality as fireworks do.
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