Canada boasts some of world's best air quality and here's where it ranks

An air quality report shows that residents in Canada can breathe easy, as the country ranks among the top countries with clean, healthy air.

An air quality report by the Fraser Institute compares air quality across 31 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, and Canada ranks among the top ten countries with the best air quality.

"Overall, Canada ranks eighth for air quality among 31 high-income countries, according to our recent study published by the Fraser Institute," reads the report.

Canada has an air quality score of 84, while Iceland takes the number one spot with an air quality score of 97.7. In comparison, the U.S. is in the 12th spot with an air quality score of 75.7, while Italy is at the bottom in the 31st spot with a score of 47.4.

Using data from 2022, "the latest year of consistently available data," the study took a look at three important factors to assess air quality: average exposure, share of the population at risk, and estimated health impacts. It also takes into account air quality guidelines established by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME).

One important factor when determining air quality is the presence of particulates: solid and liquid droplets in the air. These particles are dangerous as they can penetrate a person's lungs, enter the bloodstream, and cause damaging effects to our health. Air particles are caused by pollution or natural events like wildfires, dust storms, and volcanic eruptions.

But luckily, Canadians don't have to worry about the air that they breathe.

According to a 2023 survey, seven out of ten Canadians care about the environment and breathing clean air. However, Canadians can breathe easy knowing that they're breathing in the good stuff.

Only two per cent of Canadians were exposed to fine particle pollution levels that exceeded WHO guidelines, while Canada had the fifth-lowest estimated death and illness caused by pollution.

The report states that "Canada outperforms most comparable high-income countries on air quality, suggesting a gap between public perception and empirical reality."