Air quality in Boston is getting worse, according to a new report by the American Lung Association. 

As part of its “State of the Air” 2025 report, the American Lung Association reported that 46% of Americans live in places with unhealthy levels of ozone or particle pollution. There are 25 million more people breathing what they call “unhealthy air” compared to last year’s report. 

This is largely the result of extreme heat, drought, and wildfires, despite decades of successful efforts to reduce sources of air pollution. Eastern states were most recently impacted by a blanket of smoke from wildfires in Canada, which the report described as “unprecedented,” and this drove up levels of ozone and particle pollution. 

The Boston–Worcester–Providence metro area was ranked the 61st worst for high ozone days out of 228 metropolitan areas, 114th worst for 24-hour particle pollution out of 225 metropolitan areas, and 110th worst for annual particle pollution out of 208 metropolitan areas. 

Although all those levels are better than they were in the late 1990s, thanks in large part to the Clean Air Act, they have been on the rise since hitting lows a few years ago.

“Over the last decade, however, the findings of the report have added to the extensive evidence that a changing climate is making it harder to protect this hard-fought progress on air quality and human health,” the report said. 

Suffolk County received a C grade for high ozone days and a B grade for 24-hour particle pollution. 

Many of Suffolk County’s 768,425 residents fall into one of the American Lung Association’s at-risk populations: 121,787 are under 18 and 106,606 are 65 and over; 78,242 adults and 7,148 children have asthma; 31,030 have COPD, 362 have lung cancer, and 37,206 are affected by cardiovascular disease. 

No Massachusetts counties earned “A” grades for either particle pollution or ozone grades. The full list of grades is below. 

Particle pollution grades:
Berkshire: D
Bristol: C
Essex: C
Franklin: D
Hampden: D
Hampshire: C
Middlesex: B
Norfolk: B
Plymouth: C
Suffolk: B
Worcester: C

Ozone grades:
Barnstable: C
Berkshire: B
Bristol: D
Dukes: C
Essex: C
Franklin: B
Hampden: C
Hampshire: B
Middlesex: B
Norfolk: D
Plymouth: C
Suffolk: C
Worcester: B

Following in his late father’s footsteps, Ozzy Trapilo has made his way from BC High to Boston College to, now, the National Football League.

Trapilo, selected in the second round (56th overall) by the Bears on Friday, can check off one more major box of his own. Steve Trapilo, drafted by the Saints in the fourth round in 1987, died of a heart attack at age 39 in 2004, when Ozzy was 2 years old.

“He set the bar pretty high, but for all the better,” Trapilo said. “I’m working as hard as I can to make him proud.”

Trapilo, a 6-foot-8-inch, 316-pound offensive tackle from Norwell, earned Atlantic Coast Conference first-team honors this past season. He started 36 games at right or left tackle during his BC career and boasted a team-best 80.5 pass-block rating from Pro Football Focus this year.

A cerebral and physical force who moves well for his size, he’s a difficult matchup for often-overpowered defensive linemen.

“You may think someone that big is not an athlete,” ESPN’s Booger McFarland said. “He plays light on his feet, heavy hands, position flexibility, able to move.”

Trapilo completed the 40-yard dash in 5.21 seconds, three-cone drill in 7.71 seconds, and 20-yard shuttle in 4.7 seconds at the NFL Scouting Combine.

He trained with former Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia, alongside childhood friend and BC teammate Drew Kendall, in the months leading up to the Draft.

“His résumé doesn’t lie,” Trapilo said of Scarnecchia. “He’s a fantastic coach. Being able to work with him means a lot.”

BC head coach Bill O’Brien said Trapilo is someone who is the same every day, adding that he’ll be “a great pro.”

“He’ll do whatever you ask him to do,” O’Brien said. “He always puts the team first.”