Metro area air quality · 2025
Watertown-Fort Drum, NY
Median AQI 34 (Good). 94.7% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.
- 34
- Median AQI
- 94.7%
- Good-air days
- 0
- Unhealthy days
- 94%
- Cleaner than US metros
Watertown-Fort Drum, NY posted a 2025 median AQI of 34 (Good) with 94.7% Good days
According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Watertown-Fort Drum, NY CBSA recorded a median AQI of 34 across 355 monitored days in 2025, with 94.7% rated Good and 0 unhealthy or worse. This is an annual metro comparison, not a live advisory.
Data source EPA Air Quality System (AQS)
- Cleaner than US metros
- The Watertown-Fort Drum, NY CBSA's 94.7% Good-day share places it cleaner than 94% of US metros in 2025.
- Closest median-AQI peer
- Arkadelphia, AR (96.7% Good, median AQI 34) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Watertown-Fort Drum, NY.
- 2020–2025 Good-day shift
- Watertown-Fort Drum, NY's Good-day share moved -1.2 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI +1).
- Median AQI
- Median AQI: 34
Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 355 monitored days. EPA AQS →
The verdict
Watertown-Fort Drum, NY sits in the upper Good-day tercile among EPA CBSA metros on this site (94.7% of 355 monitored days). On the EPA scale the metro runs good, among the cleanest 10% of US metros, with a median AQI of 34 and 94.7% of 355 monitored days in the Good band.
- 34
- median AQI · Good
- 94.7%
- days rated Good
- 94%
- cleaner than US metros
- 87
- worst single reading
No day crossed into the Unhealthy tier across the metro's monitors in 2025.
Annual release change
What changed in the 2025 EPA annual release
- Watertown-Fort Drum, NY metro's Good-day share fell from 97.0% to 94.6% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -2.3 percentage points.
Watertown-Fort Drum, NY sits in the upper Good-day tercile among EPA CBSA metros on this site (94.7% of 355 monitored days). Signature read: 94.7% Good-day share (high tercile vs CBSA corpus). Aggregated EPA AQS monitors across this Core-Based Statistical Area logged a median Air Quality Index of 34 over 355 measured days in 2025 (Good / Excellent). The monitored-day split lands at 336 Good (95%), 19 Moderate (5%), and 0 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (0%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 47; the highest single-day reading hit 87 (Moderate).
Across 2020–2025, Good-day share shifted -1.2 points and median AQI moved +1 (stable). No Unhealthy-tier days appear in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Arkadelphia, AR (96.7% good, AQI 34); Augusta-Waterville, ME (85.2% good, AQI 34); Beatrice, NE (75.8% good, AQI 34).
Air Quality Summary
Median AQI
34
Good
Good Days
94.7%
336 of 355 days
Max AQI
87
Moderate
Health Grade
Excellent
90th pct: 47
AQI Day Breakdown (2025)
Distribution of 355 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.
Good
336
95%
Moderate
19
5%
USG
0
0%
Unhealthy
0
0%
Very Unhealthy
0
0%
Hazardous
0
0%
Health Impact Assessment
The Watertown-Fort Drum, NY metro area's air quality is rated Excellent based on 94.7% good air days. No unhealthy air days were recorded in 2025.
Air quality is generally acceptable. Unusually sensitive people should monitor real-time conditions at AirNow.gov during high-pollution events.
How does the Watertown-Fort Drum, NY metro compare?
How Watertown-Fort Drum, NY compares
5-Year Air Quality Trend
Air quality is stable in the Watertown-Fort Drum, NY metro. Highest Good-day share: 2022 (97.8%, 352 of 360 monitored days).
| Year | Good | Moderate | Unhealthy | Median AQI | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 345 | 15 | 0 | 33 | 90 |
| 2021 | 332 | 19 | 0 | 32 | 97 |
| 2022 | 352 | 8 | 0 | 32 | 84 |
| 2023 | 344 | 17 | 0 | 33 | 101 |
| 2024 | 352 | 11 | 0 | 32 | 80 |
| 2025 | 336 | 19 | 0 | 34 | 87 |
Metros with a similar median AQI
CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Watertown-Fort Drum, NY (34).
Arkadelphia, AR
Median AQI 34 · 96.7% Good-day share
Augusta-Waterville, ME
Median AQI 34 · 85.2% Good-day share
Beatrice, NE
Median AQI 34 · 75.8% Good-day share
Dyersburg, TN
Median AQI 34 · 76.9% Good-day share
Erie, PA
Median AQI 34 · 76.7% Good-day share
Grand Island, NE
Median AQI 34 · 82.5% Good-day share
Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure
A second relationship type: metros whose unhealthy-or-worse day count is closest to Watertown-Fort Drum, NY's 0 (independent of median AQI).
Aberdeen, SD
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 27
Aberdeen, WA
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 22
Adrian, MI
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 41
Akron, OH
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 45
Albany, GA
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 46
Albany, OR
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 27
Frequently Asked Questions
How many unhealthy air days does Watertown-Fort Drum, NY have? ▼
What is the air quality in the Watertown-Fort Drum, NY metro area? ▼
Is air quality in Watertown-Fort Drum, NY getting better or worse? ▼
What does AQI 34 mean for health? ▼
How does Watertown-Fort Drum, NY compare to other metro areas? ▼
What is the 90th percentile AQI for Watertown-Fort Drum, NY? ▼
Data Sources
Primary Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Air Quality System (AQS), Annual AQI by CBSA dataset for Watertown-Fort Drum, NY, 2025. See our methodology for how AQI, median, and coverage figures are computed.
Read our methodology , how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Source: U.S. EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by CBSA summary, Watertown-Fort Drum, NY · 2020–2025