What Is the Air Quality in Minnehaha, South Dakota?
Minnehaha, South Dakota has an Air Quality Grade of B (good) with a 5-year median AQI of 39. The dominant pollutant is Ground-Level Ozone, and air quality has been improving over the past decade.
Minnehaha, South Dakota Air Quality Snapshot
| Air Quality Grade | B66/100 |
| 5-Year Median AQI | 39 (Good) |
| Most Recent Median AQI (2023) | 44 (Good) |
| Dominant Pollutant | Ground-Level Ozone |
| 10-Year Trend | Improving (-0.39 AQI/yr) |
| Unhealthy Days (last 5 yr) | 34 |
| National Rank (cleanest = #1) | #449 of 1,020 (44th cleanest percentile) |
| South Dakota Rank | #6 of 10 |
What Does the B Grade Mean?
Minnehaha, South Dakota 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 39. Sensitive groups will see occasional caution days, but the typical resident will not need to change behavior based on air quality.
Minnehaha, South Dakota's 5-year median AQI of 39 is right around the national average of 41 across the 1,020 monitored U.S. cities tracked here. Within South Dakota, Minnehaha, South Dakota runs more polluted than the state average of 36 — local sources or geography are concentrating pollution above the state's typical reading.
For context within South Dakota: Hughes, South Dakota currently holds the state's cleanest grade (A, AQI 13), while Codington, South Dakota sits at the bottom (D, AQI 40).
What's in Minnehaha, South Dakota's Air?
The dominant pollutant in Minnehaha, South Dakota is Ground-Level Ozone. Ground-level ozone forms when sunlight reacts with vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions. It is worst on hot, sunny, stagnant summer days. Ozone irritates the lungs, triggers asthma attacks, and reduces lung function — even healthy adults can feel chest tightness and shortness of breath after exercising in elevated ozone.
Days by Dominant Pollutant (2023)
| Pollutant | Days as Dominant | Share of Year |
|---|---|---|
| Ground-Level Ozone | 254 | 70% |
| Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) | 96 | 26% |
| Coarse Particulate Matter (PM10) | 9 | 2% |
| Nitrogen Dioxide | 6 | 2% |
Is the Air Getting Better or Worse?
Air quality in Minnehaha, South Dakota has been improving over the past decade, with median AQI dropping by roughly 0.4 points per year. That is consistent with the broader national pattern — most U.S. metros have seen steady reductions in particulate and ozone pollution since the 2010s as cleaner vehicles and power plants come online.
In 2014, Minnehaha, South Dakota posted a median AQI of 43. By 2023 that figure was 44 — a rise of 1 AQI points dirtier across 10 years of EPA records.
Year-by-Year AQI in Minnehaha, South Dakota
| Year | Median AQI | Good Days | Unhealthy Days | Dominant Pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 43 | 253 | 2 | Ozone |
| 2015 | 47 | 207 | 3 | PM2.5 |
| 2016 | 42 | 269 | 2 | Ozone |
| 2017 | 38 | 287 | 0 | Ozone |
| 2018 | 40 | 275 | 3 | Ozone |
| 2019 | 37 | 301 | 1 | Ozone |
| 2020 | 38 | 298 | 0 | Ozone |
| 2021 | 39 | 266 | 5 | Ozone |
| 2022 | 39 | 300 | 1 | Ozone |
| 2023 | 44 | 235 | 27 | Ozone |
Health Context for Minnehaha, South Dakota
Across the past five years, this area has logged 34 days where AQI rose into the "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" range or worse — about 7 days per year. That is roughly typical for a U.S. metro, with most caution days clustered in summer (ozone) or wildfire season.
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. Because ozone peaks in the afternoon on hot sunny days, plan outdoor exercise for early morning or after sunset on bad-air days.
How This Grade Is Calculated
The AirHistory Air Quality Grade combines four signals: the 5-year median AQI (40% of the score), the 10-year trend direction (30%), the count of unhealthy days per year (20%), and the dominant pollutant type (10%). All four come directly from the EPA Air Quality System (AQS), which aggregates readings from federally certified monitors. Read the full methodology.
Minnehaha, South Dakota has an Air Quality Grade of B (good) with a 5-year median AQI of 39. The dominant pollutant is Ground-Level Ozone, and air quality has been improving over the past decade.
This answer pulls from the EPA Air Quality System (AQS), the authoritative federal source for U.S. air quality and pollution monitoring. The headline number above is the direct answer; what follows is the additional context most readers need to use the answer for a real decision rather than just a fact lookup.
For readers turning this answer into action: cross-reference against the underlying the EPA Air Quality System (AQS) record before acting on time-sensitive decisions. The site renders the data as it was published; subsequent revisions can shift the picture, and the live federal data is always the authoritative current reference.
Source: EPA Outdoor Air Quality Data, 2026.