What Is the Air Quality in Ford, Kansas?

Ford, Kansas earns a B — air quality is reliably in the safe range for most residents most of the time, with a 5-year median AQI of 15. Sensitive groups will see occasional caution days, but the typical resident will not need to change behavior based on air quality.

Ford, Kansas's 5-year median AQI of 15 is 26 points below the national average of 41 — meaningfully cleaner than the typical U.S. metro tracked here. Within Kansas, Ford, Kansas runs cleaner than the state average of 38 — a positive signal that local conditions (terrain, wind patterns, emission sources) are working in residents' favor.

For context within Kansas: Sherman, Kansas currently holds the state's cleanest grade (B, AQI 16), while Neosho, Kansas sits at the bottom (D, AQI 48).

Air quality in Ford, Kansas has been getting worse over the past decade, with median AQI climbing by roughly 0.6 points per year. That bucks the national trend of broad improvement, and most often reflects either growing wildfire smoke exposure (particularly across the West) or rising local emissions from population and freight growth.

In 2014, Ford, Kansas posted a median AQI of 7. By 2023 that figure was 15 — a rise of 8 AQI points dirtier across 10 years of EPA records.

Across the past five years, this area has logged just 3 days where AQI rose into the "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" range or worse — about 1 days per year, or roughly one every other month. That is a low count by national standards.

For most healthy adults, current air quality in this area does not require any change in behavior. People with severe asthma, COPD, or recent cardiac events should still keep an eye on daily AQI alerts, especially during wildfire season. PM10 is largely a near-source pollutant — staying upwind of busy roads, construction, and unpaved areas can substantially reduce exposure.