Environment Canada has confirmed the haze that has lingered in the southern Manitoba sky the last few days is, in fact, smoke from forest fires in British Columbia and the foothills of Alberta.

Meteorologist Natalie Hasell says it takes only about half a day for that smoke to travel from B.C. to Manitoba. And in fact, she says it has stretched as far east as northern Quebec. According to Hasell, an advancing cold front should push that smoke to the south later today. However, with the fires still burning out west, Hasell says we can expect more haze in the days to come.

Environment Canada uses an Air Quality Health Index. Hasell says it is capped at 10, which means the air quality in that area presents a very high risk to a person's health. Parts of B.C. are right now at 10, while southern Manitoba sits at 2, which is considered ideal air quality for outdoor activities. Hasell says air quality advisories were issued for parts of southwestern Manitoba on Monday. She says she would not be surprised if these same advisories are issued for southeastern Manitoba in the coming days.

Hasell says it is important to pay attention to how you are feeling on days like today with smoke in the air. She notes parts of the population are more susceptible to smoke, including the very young, the very old and those with cardiovascular, pulmonary or respiratory issues. Hasell says the first symptom is irritation with the eyes, throat or lungs. Other symptoms include pain in the lungs while breathing and a cough for no reason.

If you start feeling out of breath, Hasell says it is important to find a place where the air is filtered. She also encourages checking air conditioner filters to make sure they are clean.

"The other people who would be at risk would be the people who decide to exercise outside and the people who have to work outside, so they would be exposed to these conditions for quite a bit longer," says Hasell. "You want to avoid any situation where you will be exerting yourself with these conditions because the harder you breathe the more stuff you are going to breathe in and you don't want to do that unnecessarily."

Though the sky is hazy, there isn't much smoke to smell in southeastern Manitoba. Hasell says that is because the greater concentrations of the smoke are far above the ground. It is because that smoke is so high that our air quality is still good.

According to Hasell, if the smoke is thick enough it can create a lower UV Index and can also restrict the air from getting warmer. However, she says there is still a lot of sunshine making its way to the surface and so the use of moisturizer and sun protectant is still encouraged.

Meanwhile, Hasell says the cold front moving in should result in a cooler night on Tuesday. Another system is coming through on Wednesday which could bring some rain and possible thunderstorms.