Flathead County commissioners voted unanimously Aug. 18 to decommission the Whitefish and Kalispell air quality monitoring sites after a request from state and federal agencies.  

The proposal was brought forth by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Montana Department of Environmental Quality because the Kalispell and Whitefish monitoring sites no longer meet the criteria for regulatory data collection due to urban and vegetation encroachment, according to Jim Wardensky, environmental health manager with the Flathead City-County Health Department. 

Montana DEQ Analysis and Planning Section Supervisor Jennifer Harris said it would cost about $21,990 to replace the Whitefish site and that the yearly cost to maintain the existing site and monitor it is no longer plausible for continued operation. 

Harris told commissioners that the Whitefish and Kalispell sites monitor PM10, or inhalable particles with diameters that are generally 10 micrometers and smaller. She said the main concern at the DEQ is more closely monitoring PM2.5, which comes from wildfire smoke, organic compounds and metals. 

The Columbia Falls site has always monitored PM2.5, she said.  

“PM2.5 is what you are actually inhaling and getting into your lungs that is causing the health concerns out there. PM10 is dangerous too, but we’ve been in compliance with the PM10 for years. So, we want to consolidate those sites for monitoring PM2.5 so we can look at that more closely,” Harris said.  

Six written public comments were received on the plan. Two were in favor of keeping all the air quality monitoring sites due to wildfires and poor air quality in the area. Another stressed the importance of access to adequate air quality monitoring for those who wish to engage in outdoor recreation and need the results for health reasons, and others asked what would happen if the singular site in Columbia Falls failed during a bad air quality event. 

Bigfork resident Linda Walters spoke at Tuesday’s commissioner meeting to express concerns about inadequate air quality monitoring as the Flathead Valley population grows.  

“I’d rather improve what we already have established ... by relocating or improving equipment. Because there are variable weather patterns here,” Walters said. “It’s been my experience just driving around the valley, I can be in Kalispell and look at Columbia Falls — I can be in one weather pattern over here and see thunderstorms, rain and just an entirely different weather pattern near Columbia Falls.”  

The findings of fact, which include responses from Montana DEQ staff, said Columbia Falls, Whitefish and Kalispell are all in the same airshed and that it is not necessary to have three monitors within 15 miles of each other.  

Wardensky said the Kalispell site was shut down earlier this year without county approval because the contract for that station allowed the DEQ to decommission it without a governing body. The Kalispell site sits on property close to a busy city street, is prone to theft, damage, trespassing and is on property that is proposed to be sold by Flathead Electric Cooperative, according to the findings of fact. 

Wardensky said the air quality monitoring program is more comprehensive than the data gathered by the DEQ sites, particularly when it comes to monitoring PM 10. Environmental Health oversees burn and trade waste permits in the county, which impact the amount of PM10 in the air.  

“We have roughly over 6,000 burn permits we issue every year ... and trade waste permits for people who are doing landscaping or logging and want to burn debris off-site. With gravel pits, as they are travelling in and out of the pit, we make sure they are watering that so there’s less dust, less PM 10 from those activities,” Wardensky said.  

Harris told commissioners that there wouldn’t be any changes in how the data appears to people who check weather apps or websites for current air quality. And although the sites are decommissioned, there are several PurpleAir sensors across the county that monitor PM2.5 in the air.  

“We’ve been looking at local high schools throughout the entire state of Montana and putting in PurpleAir sensors both inside and outside of the schools. And this is helping out with athletics, when they are looking at if it is safe for students to go and participate in extra curriculars and sports,” Harris said.  

There are PurpleAir sensors located at several Flathead County schools and at other places throughout the valley. To see a map showing current air quality and sensor locations, visit map.purpleair.com.  

The Flathead Valley has seen several days with heavy smoke throughout July and August, as nearby wildfires and smoke from fires in Oregon and Washington blanket the region. The air quality index rating in Columbia Falls topped out at 211 on Sunday, Aug. 9, prompting the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to issue an air quality alert. 

Reporter Taylor Inman can be reached at 406-758-4440 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.