An air quality alert issued Monday afternoon for the Chicago area will be in effect through Tuesday night, officials said.
The alert, issued by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, applies to Cook County and surrounding McHenry, Lake, Kendall, Kane, DuPage, Grundy and Will counties, according to the National Weather Service.
The weather service’s Chicago office in a post Monday to X, formerly known as Twitter, attributed the alert to unhealthy ozone levels and some lingering effects of smoke from wildfires in Canada.
As part of its alert, the Illinois EPA has declared that Tuesday will be an air pollution action day, officials said. Action days are issued when air quality is at least unhealthy for sensitive groups for two or more consecutive days.
Officials are encouraging active children and adults, especially those with pulmonary or respiratory disease, to limit prolonged activity outside. Officials are also urging area residents to reduce their pollution levels.
The Illinois EPA issued its first action day of the year in early June.
