A recent report analyzing air quality in British Columbia shows Kitimat recorded some of the province’s lowest levels of certain pollutants in 2025, even though there have been growing complaints by residents and health experts regarding emission levels at LNG Canada’s facility.
The BC Lung Foundation’s 2026 State of the Air report studies the levels of pollution at various monitoring stations across B.C., including in Kitimat.
According to the report, the level of ground-level ozone at the Kitimat-Whitesail station was 32.5 parts per billion, which was the lowest level recorded out of 48 sites in B.C.
Nitrogen dioxide levels were also low, with the level at the Kitimat-Haisla Village station being 0.5 parts per billion, the lowest among 52 stations.
However, the report also identified some of the province’s higher sulphur dioxide concentrations at monitoring sites near industrial operations, including Kitimat.
The findings come amid ongoing concerns about the impacts of flaring at the LNG Canada site.
In July 2025, the BC Energy Regulator requested additional air-quality analysis from LNG Canada about the impacts of flaring.
LNG Canada filed its report in October 2025 and said that the increase in flaring had a small impact on the local air quality. In fact, there were no abnormal increases in nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide or fine particulate matter from the flaring.
The regulator said the assessment did not identify a measurable impact on local air quality that would require changes to the facility’s monitoring plan.
However, concerns about potential health effects have also been raised in Terrace.
At its Apr. 27 council meeting, Terrace city council passed a motion urging the provincial government to conduct an independent cumulative health impact assessment related to natural gas production.
The motion followed a letter from Terrace physician Marie-Lyne Bourassa, who raised concerns about flaring emissions from LNG Canada’s Kitimat facility and their potential effects on people dealing with health issues in the region.
Bourassa said flaring can release pollutants that are not always regularly monitored. She also raised concerns about reports from some northern B.C. healthcare providers of increases in asthma and heart disease among patients, which she said could be associated with poor air quality.
During the council discussion, Mayor Sean Bujtas noted that Terrace shares an airshed with Kitimat and is also affected by regional industrial activity.
The province later responded to Terrace council’s request through correspondence from Health Minister Josie Osborne, received at council’s Aug. 10 meeting, and Energy and Climate Solutions Minister Adrian Dix, received Aug. 24.
Both letters were received for information by council. The publicly available meeting records do not indicate that the province has completed or released the independent cumulative health impact assessment requested by Terrace.
LNG Canada’s community feedback records presented to Kitimat council in September 2025 showed 11 complaints and 17 concerns related to flaring. Another four complaints and three concerns were categorized under other environmental issues, including air quality.
The BC Lung Foundation report also noted that Kitimat’s Air Quality Health Index coverage was consolidated in 2025, combining readings, and had measurements done at three different sites in Whitesail, Riverlodge, and Haisla in Kitamaat Village.
The report does not give Kitimat an overall ranking for air quality in the province. However, pollutants are measured and found to have low levels of ground-level ozone and nitrogen dioxide, but Kitimat is one of the areas with high levels of sulphur dioxide.
