Submitted photo Smoke from ongoing wildfires in Canada is settling in the U.S., resulting in another air quality advisory this week.

Air quality concerns due to Canadian wildfires returned to most of New York state Wednesday.

An air quality health advisory for fine particulates, issued by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, remained in effect through midnight. The advisory, which was extended to include all of New York state Wednesday, notes the Air Quality Index — a way to correlate levels of different pollutants to one scale; the higher the AQI value, the greater the health concern

Elizabeth Jurkowski, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Buffalo, said the Air Quality Index was an important value to monitor as smoke from the Canadian wildfires settled over the United States.

“The DEC makes the advisories and we are just the messengers, but right now it looks like the smoke is expected to last into (Thursday),” Jurkowski said. “It will probably be worse in the afternoon and better at night.”

Jurkowski said air flow will determine if the haze remains in Western New York. From a meteorological standpoint, she said smoke from the fires moves into to the area depending on troughs in the air that bring in high or low pressure and temperatures.

“Fire from smoke rises and, since it is such a big amount, it gets caught in the jet stream,” Jurkowski said. “It all depends on how the wind blows that transports it to the Western New York area.”

For the outdoors, air quality levels were expected to be great than an AQI value of 151 for fine particulates on Wednesday. By 9:30 a.m., the AQI in most of Chautauqua County was at 175, the county Health Department said in a news release.

“We recommend postponing youth sporting events when the AQI is greater than 150,” said Dr. Michael Faulk, chief medical officer and interim public health director. “If there is a smell of smoke or visible haze in the air, there is a good chance the AQI is greater than 150. Although these levels are unlikely to cause immediate or life threatening symptoms, there may be individuals who could experience worsening symptoms of their underlying respiratory disease. Additionally, individuals may experience mild throat irritation, cough, or nasal congestion.”

Local air quality resulted in a few cancellations. The Municipal Band Concert, scheduled for Wednesday, was called off, while Jamestown Area Youth Soccer released the following statement: “In the interest of the health of all of our players, we are going to cancel the games tonight due to the Air Quality Alert. We will look into rescheduling if it’s possible. Stay safe!”

The Northern Chautauqua Soccer Association’s game also was canceled.

Gov. Kathy Hochul called on New York residents to be vigilant, and put a plan in place for the first-time use of emergency cell phone alerts, which will be used to warn New Yorkers if the air quality index exceeds the 200 threshold for “Very Unhealthy” air.

“With smoke from the Canadian wildfires once again impacting air quality throughout our state this week, we’re urging New Yorkers to remain vigilant,” Hochul said in a statement. “We’re activating emergency cell phone alerts to ensure New Yorkers have the latest information and are continuing to coordinate with local counties to monitor conditions and distribute masks. I encourage all New Yorkers to stay informed about the latest updates and take the necessary precautions to protect yourselves and your loved ones.”

The county Health Department and Office of Emergency Services said it has KN95 and N95 masks available for distribution at the HRC Building, fourth floor, 7 N. Erie St., Mayville. The city of Jamestown said it has masks available at all fire stations, except Station 5, as well as City Hall.

“Please be safe and mindful to limit your time outside,” the city said in a message on Facebook.