Region 13 monitors air quality during practices and games and adjusts or cancels activities when air pollution reaches unhealthy levels. We follow the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality Index (AQI) — the same scale schools, cities, and the Southern California Air Quality Management District use.
Live AQI readings for our service area are on the Weather and Field Conditions page.
When activities are modified or canceled
| AQI | Category | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 0–50 | Good | Normal activities. |
| 51–100 | Moderate | Players with asthma or other sensitivities should monitor symptoms and limit prolonged exertion if needed. |
| 101–150 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | Sensitive players (asthma, lung conditions, allergies) should reduce intensity or move indoors. Coaches add water breaks and watch for symptoms in all players. |
| 151–200 | Unhealthy | Region 13 cancels outdoor practices and games. Indoor alternatives may be substituted at coach discretion. |
| 201–300 | Very Unhealthy | All outdoor activity canceled. |
| 301+ | Hazardous | Emergency conditions. All outdoor activity canceled; players should stay indoors. |
The closure trigger is AQI above 150. This matches Pasadena Unified School District’s wildfire-smoke guidance and aligns with CIF and CDC recommendations for youth sports during poor air quality.
How we measure
AQI readings come from the EPA’s AirNow network of regulatory air monitors. The Weather and Field Conditions page shows the current AQI for our area, the dominant pollutant (typically ozone in summer or PM2.5 during wildfire smoke), and the EPA category. Readings update hourly.
The automated banner is advisory. As with heat and rain closures, a Region 13 board member confirms the call and posts the official closure to the home page banner via Slack. Notifications go out by 7 AM on game days or 4 PM on practice days when air-quality alerts are in effect.
If the visible smoke or smell is bad even when AQI is below threshold (a single nearby fire can produce localized impact that monitors miles away don’t catch), use judgment — and contact the field coordinator if you think a field should be closed.
Why this matters for kids
Children breathe more air per pound of body weight than adults, breathe through their mouths more often (bypassing the nose’s natural filter), and during exertion intake even more deeply. The same air pollution affects them more.
Particulate matter from wildfire smoke is especially harmful. PM2.5 particles are small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream. Even short exposures during exercise have been linked to asthma flare-ups, reduced lung development, and longer-term respiratory issues.
Ground-level ozone — typical of hot summer afternoons in the LA Basin — is also a concern. Ozone irritates the airways and can cause coughing, chest tightness, and reduced lung function during exertion.
What you can do
- Check the home page banner first. It shows the official Region 13 closure status.
- Check the weather page for the live AQI reading. The current value and category live there.
- Use AirNow.gov directly during wildfire events. The Pasadena monitor updates hourly; you can check it any time.
- Listen to your child. If a player feels short of breath, dizzy, or develops a cough during play, stop the activity. Asthma sufferers should keep rescue inhalers nearby.
Related
- Weather and Field Conditions: live AQI, current conditions, forecast
- Heat Policy: CIF heat alert levels and required actions
- Rain Policy: wet-field closure thresholds
- Safety: concussion, sudden cardiac arrest, incident reporting
- AirNow.gov: EPA’s official AQI portal
- South Coast AQMD: regional air quality management
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