The San Joaquin Valley is making progress in the fight against air pollution, achieving a historic milestone in meeting federal standards for fine particulate matter. But even as the broader region celebrates cleaner air, Fresno continues to struggle — ranking as one of the most polluted cities in the nation.

The good news: The Valley Air District’s 2024 Annual Report shows the region is now in attainment of the federal annual standard for PM2.5 — or fine particulate matter — for the first time since monitoring began in 1999. Annual levels have dropped by more than 50% over the past two decades, a result of decades-long efforts from local agencies, farmers, businesses, and community members, the report said.

“Meeting the federal annual PM2.5 standard marks a historic milestone for the San Joaquin Valley,” said Samir Sheikh, executive director of the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District. “This achievement reflects years of collaboration and commitment across all sectors.”

Fresno Ranks 3rd in Most Air Polluted US Cities

But despite this milestone, Fresno’s air remains among the nation’s dirtiest. The American Lung Association’s latest “State of the Air” report ranked Fresno third worst in the country for air pollution, surpassing larger metro areas like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Detroit.

The ranking is based on data collected from 2021 to 2023 and reflects unhealthy levels of smog and soot. The report shares long-term health concerns for Valley residents exposed to consistently poor air quality.

Bakersfield and Visalia ranked even higher on the list, with Bakersfield taking the top spot for worst year-round and short-term particle pollution for the sixth consecutive year. Nearly 34.3 million Californians — or about 88% of the state’s population — live in areas that received at least one “F” grade in the report’s pollution metrics.

Nationwide, about 156 million Americans — 46% of the population — live in counties with failing air quality grades.

Meanwhile, Casper, Wyoming — a city of fewer than 80,000 people — was recognized as the cleanest U.S. city for year-round particle pollution. Hawaii’s Honolulu and Kahului-Wailuku also made the top 10 list of cleanest cities. No California city was included.

Despite many California cities still ranking among the most polluted, a dozen metropolitan areas — including Fresno — recorded their cleanest air quality.

Fresno posted its best results ever across all three major pollution categories: ozone, short-term particle pollution, and year-round particle pollution.

Other metro areas achieving record-low pollution levels in at least one category include Bakersfield, Chico, Los Angeles-Long Beach, Sacramento, Salinas, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, Santa Rosa-Petaluma, and Visalia.

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