Mecklenburg County officials say 2025 marked the first year on record that air pollution levels stayed within healthy limits every day of the year.
For the past decade, the county has met federal health-based air quality standards, but still averaged about five unhealthy air quality days annually. Those days are typically driven by elevated levels of ground-level ozone and fine particle pollution.
County officials say a combination of favorable weather conditions and continued pollution-reduction efforts helped eliminate unhealthy days in 2025. They also cited limited impacts from wildfires, prescribed burns and fireworks, which can significantly worsen air quality.
Mecklenburg County is one of only three counties in North Carolina with a dedicated air quality agency.