County stresses communication with air quality

For those who have lived in the narrow Kootenai Valley long enough, they are no strangers to inversions. In such instances, warmer temperatures are found at higher altitudes and pollutants become trapped in stagnant air.

A month ago in the Libby area, temperature inversions were occuring on a nightly basis. A weather station on Zonolite Mountain, which is roughly 2,000 feet higher than Libby, showed periods of warmer temperatures.

Fortunately, the Lincoln County Department of Environmental Health did not need to call a full-fledged air alert. Fine particulate matter levels – referred to as PM2.5 by air quality officials – stayed low enough because of breaks in the inversions during daylight hours.

The county’s Kathi Hooper said that the environmental health department is focusing on communication and education when it comes to air quality.

“We are reminding people that assistance is available if their wood stove is not operating correctly and we can provide thermometers,” Hooper said. “We can put people on our notification e-mail lists for advisories; we can do phone notifications.”

The environmental department continues to have the funds to offer assistance to any residents who are having wood stove problems.

“We have one of our wood stove experts go out and take a look and see if it needs a rebuild or if a catalytic converter is not working,” Hopper said.

Stovepipe thermometers are available to help residents find the best operation zones.

A new program that could be ready to roll in January involves electric heater loaners. When an air alert is called, residents are prohibited from using woodstoves and must find an alternate heat source. The loaners would be available during what is referred to as a stage 2 air advisory – the final step before going to an air alert.

“If the air advisory persists for more than 24 hours and we don’t see a change coming, we will notify people that we are stage 2,” Hooper said. “We’ll start doing more patrolling … and encourage people to use their stoves properly. That’s when people can come in and get a heater if they need a loaner. That’s our best chance of not going to a full alert.”

Erik Leigh, an environmental technician with the county, told commissioners last week that he is working with a supplier on getting heaters at a discounted price.

The environmental health department is now using a four-stage system to identify air qualify conditions. At stage 0, air quality is good and no restrictions are in place. A stage 1 air advisory means the four-hour PM2.5 average is nearing “unhealthy” levels and officials will ask the public for voluntary use of an alternate heat source.

If those “unhealthy” levels are actually reached, then a stage 2 air advisory is called. At this point, the inversion is continuing and there is no good dispersion forecast. This is when people who have requested assistance would be able to pick up a loaner heater.

If the four-hour average of PM2.5 exceeds 28 and no good dispersion shows up in the forecast, then a stage 3 air alert is called and it becomes mandatory to use an alternate heat source.

PM2.5 – approximately 1/30th the size of an average human hair – can aggravate heart and lung diseases and has been associated with a variety of serious health problems including heart attacks, chronic bronchitis and asthma.

Sources of PM2.5 include fuel combustion from wood burning, gasoline automobiles, diesel-powered vehicles such as trucks and busses, power plants and industrial processes.

Earlier this month when those overnight inversions were present, advisories went out asking people to use an alternate heat source. So, were officials close to reaching stage 3.

“When we looked over the data, we had single hours in the 40s and we could see trends each day when it was coming back down,” Hooper said. “So, we did not (issue an alert).”

The first air alert since the 1990s was called in October 2008.

The Environmental Protection Agency created a greater Libby air quality zone that falls under the authority of the county. During the inversion problem early this month, matters were complicated by smoke effects from Plum Creek Timber Co. slash pile burning. Just outside of the zone, at least one rural resident complained of horrible conditions because of smoke trapped in the valley.

Hooper said her department is trying to organize a public meeting for sometime in January. She would like to include Montana Department of Environmental Quality officials so a specific date has not yet been finalized.

DEQ seeks info on air pollution

The Montana Department of Environmental Quality is seeking opinions from residents about how they feel about air pollution.

The department recently launched an informal Internet survey of Montana residents regarding air pollution in the state. The short survey can be taken at www.deq.mt.gov , “Air Pollution Public Survey.”

The survey will be available until Jan. 8.

Eric Merchant, supervisor of the DEQ Air Quality Planning and Policy section, expects the survey to provide useful information.

“I’m interested to see the results from this survey to gain a better insight regarding Montanans’ perceptions of air quality,” Merchant said. “Because the survey is informal and experimental, it will also help us determine how well Internet surveys measure public opinion.”

The DEQ will use the survey information when it develops the 2010 Montana Ambient Air Monitoring Network Assessment Plan. A draft of the plan will be posted on the DEQ website for further review and comment by May 15.

For more information about the survey, contact Bob Jeffrey at 406-444-5280 or by e-mail at rjeffrey@mt.gov . More information about Montana air quality is available on the DEQ website at www.deg.mt.gov .