MARQUETTE — The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality has issued an air quality advisory for elevated levels of fine particulates in the western half of the Upper Peninsula for Friday.

The advisory includes the counties of Baraga, Dickinson, Gogebic, Houghton, Iron, Keweenaw, Marquette, Menominee and Ontonagon. Pollutants within those areas are expected to be in the unhealthy for sensitive groups range.

The National Weather Service reports that a cold front moving down from Ontario early Friday morning will bring wildfire smoke plumes from fires in the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan into the region. There is a possibility that hourly levels could reach the unhealthy range for a short period of time.

Avoiding strenuous outdoor activities, especially those with heart disease and respiratory diseases such as asthma is recommended, as well as refraining from activities that contribute to air pollution, such as outdoor burning and the use of residential wood burning devices.

The NWS advises to keep windows closed overnight to prevent smoke from getting indoors and, if possible, run central air conditioning with MERV-13 or higher rated filters.

For up-to-date air quality data for Michigan visit the MiAir website at air-egle.hub.arcgis.com.