These illustrations show Sydney's smoke like you've never seen it before

Updated

You can see the smoke, but not the dangers — these graphics illustrate what Sydneysiders have been inhaling for weeks.

Leaving Beijing for a new life in Sydney, Gloria Zhou never thought she'd need smog protection again.

But a decade after settling into her new home, Gloria is once again reaching for a face mask.

The haze produced by a month of unprecedented bushfires around Sydney has left her feeling nauseated.

"We know this is not normal for Sydney," the 30-year-old IT consultant said.

Dr John Balmes, a professor of environmental health sciences at the University of California Berkeley goes further.

He calls it "a new abnormal" — and warns Australians will have to get used to it.

So what does Sydney's toxic air actually look like when it reaches levels worse than Beijing?

The ABC has used air quality index readings from around Sydney to create a graphic comparison of the dangerous particles in the air.

Known as PM2.5, this fine particulate matter is too small for the eye to see, but can cause long-term health effects.

On a normal spring day, these average 17-20 PM2.5 in Sydney, as illustrated in the graphic below.

We've enlarged the particles so you can compare the pollution levels.

Sydney's 'new abnormal'

But in Sydney's "new abnormal", the levels of PM2.5 pollution have soared past not only Beijing, but also New Delhi.

Scientists say the particles — each less than 2.5 micrometres across — can penetrate the lungs, worsen asthma and other respiratory diseases and affect pregnancies.

On Tuesday the air quality in central Sydney deteriorated to 310 PM2.5, shrouding the city skyline and descending in a haze over the pitch at the SCG.

Our graphic shows the increase in those dangerous particles being inhaled by our Sheffield Shield cricketers.

Pollution across the state

A dangerous haze first descended on coastal towns along the state's North Coast as bushfires raged from Mullumbimby to Port Macquarie a month ago.

Port Macquarie was particularly hard hit, with PM2.5 levels soaring past 1,000 to 1,600 as the smoke turned the sky an apocalyptic orange.

Ash blanketed the sand of beachside towns as winds blew the smoke south to Sydney, where air quality was again rated "hazardous" in several areas.

This graphic shows what that looks like.

Suffering in the suburbs

A month later, the 'mega blaze' north of Sydney and the Green Wattle fire to the south are adding to the haze, with temperature inversions regularly trapping the pollution over the city.

School children are being kept inside and weekend sport cancelled, changing the DNA of summer in Sydney.

But weather conditions mean the air quality has varied widely across the Greater Sydney area.

As the smoke from the northern fires blanketed the city on November 21, the CBD recorded 121 PM2.5, while Eastwood and Parramatta clocked in at 359 PM2.5

This month pollution levels have also varied, with suburbs around the Green Wattle fire in the Sydney's south-west suffering some of the worst air quality.

Last month, suburbs in Sydney's north-west recorded particulate levels as high as 790 at Rouse Hill on November 19.

An analysis of Google Trends since the beginning of October shows searches for "smoke masks", "smoke health effects", "smoke health pets" have skyrocketed.

NSW Department of Environment data shows Sydney's air quality across the bushfire season is already three times worse than at any moment in the past five years.

While face masks are now popping up all over Sydney, health officials warn only respirators rated as "P2" or "N95" are effective against smoke, but they must be properly fitted.

Flimsy surgical-style masks do nothing to protect pedestrians against the dangerous nano-particles.

Sydney to San Francisco

NSW is not alone in suffering poor air quality thanks to bushfires.

Massive wildfires in California last year saw San Francisco blanketed in smoke for weeks, with the level of dangerous particles soaring past 200 PM2.5

Dr Balmes has been watching the fires surrounding Sydney, and comparing them to his own fire studies in California.

"People have always had clean air in the last couple of decades here [in California]," he said.

"In the last few years ... to see how bad the air gets here from one of those catastrophic fires has been a [shock] to the public."

Dr Balmes said climate change was one of the factors behind catastrophic wildfires, warning it had become a wedge issue in both the US and Australia.

"I would hope that people make the connection between bushfires and climate change, because I know that how to respond to climate policy-wise in Australia is controversial, just like it is here," he said.

But smoke haze is only the first stage of the bushfire fallout — next comes what Dr Balmes described as the "emotional distress" caused by ongoing pollution in those cities.

Gloria Zhou agrees the smoke is causing distress.

The plants on her Homebush balcony are dying, and she no longer hangs laundry outside as it gets covered in ash.

"In China, especially around Autumn, we wear masks to block some of the smog, but I've not had to do that in Sydney until recently," she said.

When the acrid smell of bushfires first began wafting across the Sydney basin last month, Ms Zhou simply told her husband:

"You know, this reminds me of home".

Credits:

Editor: Riley Stuart

Riley Stuart Sub-editor: Mark Davies

Mark Davies Graphics: Andrew Harrison

Andrew Harrison Photography: Kevin Nguyen, Steven Saphore (AAP)

Kevin Nguyen, Steven Saphore (AAP) Video production: Jack Fisher

Topics: disasters-and-accidents, fires, bushfire, environment, climate-change, pollution, air-pollution, sydney-2000

First posted