The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has lifted the Emergency Air Quality Forecast and Caution for Boundary, Bonner, Kootenai, Benewah and Shoshone Counties (outside of reservation boundaries), effective 8/31/2015 at 12 PM. Please be aware that numerous wildfires are still active across north Idaho and air quality can deteriorate rapidly. Be aware of changing conditions to protect your health.
Monday, August 31, 2015
DEQ lifts Air Quality Forecast and Caution for Custer and Lemhi Counties
The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has lifted the Emergency Air Quality Forecast and Caution for Lemhi and Custer Counties.
08/31/2015 Idaho DEQ Smoke Forecast
Updated
Noon MDT Monday, August 31, 2015
Valid
through: Noon MDT Tuesday, September 1, 2015
Smoke
Outlook
Air quality is currently ranging from
Good to Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups in all of Idaho with higher hourly impacts
across the Clearwater Basin Drainage and the Salmon-Challis area. Air quality is forecast to remain in Moderate
to Unhealthy category for the 24hr standard across central Idaho today while
northern Idaho has seen some improvement and is forecast to be in the Good to Moderate category. Southern Idaho remains in the Good category. Impacts are from
regional fires burning in Washington State, California, Oregon, and a multitude
of local fires in the Clearwater drainage, the northern Panhandle, and Central
Idaho Mountains.
Nez
Perce Reservation: 24-hour monitor readings range from Good to Unhealthy for
Sensitive Groups. Hourly readings are fluctuating from Moderate to Unhealthy,
depending on location and wind direction. The Nez Perce Tribe will
continue their Air Quality Advisory. Please contact the Nez Perce Tribe
for more information: airquality@nezperce.org.
For the remainder of Monday, expect partly to mostly cloudy skies and wind speeds
from 5-10 mph in the southeast, 2-8 mph in the southwest, and 8-12 mph across
the northern Panhandle. Generally
speaking, the winds at the surface will be from the southwest-west with regions
of northwest within the Treasure Valley and over the Clearwater drainages. There may be light showers over elevated
regions across the state this afternoon in extreme northern Idaho. On Tuesday, a more southwesterly flow pattern
will establish as an upper level low settles of Haida Gwaii. This will continue to allow drier and warmer
conditions to establish before the system moves east and brings cooler,
stormier weather. This may allow for an
increase in fire activity in the short term.
The strongest smoke impacts are
occurring across the Clearwater drainages, Central Idaho Mountains, and the
northern Panhandle with lighter impacts in the McCall region. Expect to experience impacts from the Canada
border south to the Salmon River corridor with some drainage impacts into the
McCall and the Lower Treasure Valley areas tonight. The highest impacts are expected to be within
the drainages of the Clearwater, Salmon, Lochsa, down into the
Lewiston-Clarkston Valley. The northern
tier of the Purcell Trench will also continue to experience impacts with some
clearing from Moscow north to Sandpoint.
In southern Idaho, impacts will be greatest within the drainages around McCall
and the Lower Treasure Valley and generally north (and including) of a line
running from Weiser to Salmon. Conditions
have generally improved across all of Idaho with values in the Good and
Moderate range across all monitors except for Cottonwood, which is reading Unhealthy
for Sensitive Groups. Nighttime drainage
smoke will continue to provide impacts in regions near and downwind of the
fires. Impacts in the central Idaho
region will continue to be the greatest into Wednesday as fire activity is
likely to increase. Fires burning in northeast Oregon and southeast Washington
will continue to add smoke into the Palouse region. Clearing should be expected over the open
expanses with greater improvement possible from Wednesday on through the
weekend.
DEQ Air Quality Advisories:
Idaho DEQ has issued an Air Quality Advisory:
·
Lewiston Regional Office for Latah,
Nez Perce, Lewis, Clearwater, Idaho Counties, river corridors and surrounding
areas (off the Nez Perce Reservation) through September
1st at 10:00am when it will be extended or lifted.
·
Idaho Falls Regional Office for Lemhi County and Custer
County until August 31st at 3:00pm when it will be extended or
lifted.
The USFS installed monitors in Riggins, ID, Halfway, OR, and
Newport, WA. The information can be found at http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/smoke.pl
·
Riggins, ID monitor is Smoke
USFS R1-306
·
Halfway, OR monitor is Smoke
#68
·
Users should be aware that the
Forest Service site reports the data in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). To convert from UTC to Mountain Daylight
Time, subtract 6 hours.
Smoke forecasts are dependent on predicted fire growth and weather. If conditions change unexpectedly, impacts could occur. When visibility starts to go below 5 miles, sensitive groups should minimize outdoor activities. Everyone else should minimize prolonged or physical activity outdoors. Visit the Idaho Smoke Blog for more information at http://idsmoke.blogspot.com/
Your eyes are your best tools to determine if it’s safe to be outside. Even if you smell smoke, the air quality may still be good.
AQI Category
|
Visibility (miles)
|
Good
|
11+
|
Moderate
|
6-10
|
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
|
3-5
|
Unhealthy
|
1½ -2¾
|
Very Unhealthy
|
1-1¼
|
Hazardous
|
Less than 1
|
How to estimate air quality based on visibility for areas without an air quality monitor or airport visibility estimate:
a. Face away from the sun.
b. Determine the limit of your visible range by looking for targets at known distances (miles).
c. Visible range is when an object you can easily see in the distance disappears.
d. Use the visibility values above to determine the local wildfire smoke category.
DEQ extends Air Quality Forecast and Caution for North Central Idaho
Health Impacts and Recommended Actions
When air quality is
Outdoor Burning Restrictions
All outdoor open burning is prohibited by the Department of Environmental Quality Rules for the Control of Air Pollution in Idaho (IDAPA 58.01.01.550).
Contact
For more information, contact DEQ’s Regional Office in Lewiston at (208) 799-4370.
For real-time air monitoring information, visit DEQ’s website at airquality.deq.idaho.gov.
For more information about wildfire smoke, visit Idaho’s Smoke Blog at idsmoke.blogspot.com.
Monday,
August 31, 2015
Air
Quality Advisory Remains in Effect on the Nez Perce Reservation
Description of
Air Quality Event:
Due
to wildfire smoke from local and regional wildfires, the Air Quality
Advisory issued for the Nez Perce Reservation remains in effect. Wildfire
smoke will continue to move in and out of the area during the day and
overnight.
Affected Areas:
All
areas on the Nez Perce Reservation.
Air Quality
Index (AQI) Category:
For
those communities in close proximity to the fires, both 24-hour and 1-hour
monitor readings can be expected to range from the “Moderate” to “Unhealthy”
category. The western most portion of
the Reservation is forecasted to remain in the “Good” to “Moderate”
category. Local air quality will improve and worsen as smoke moves in and out
of communities. Some areas may be more impacted than others, so please take
appropriate precautions. For AQI
health-related information, visit Community Guide
to Staying Healthy During Wildfire Smoke Events.
Restrictions:
No
EPA/NPT burn permits will be approved.
Next Update:
These
restrictions are in effect through 10:00am Tuesday, September 1st,
2015.
Nez Perce Tribe
ERWM Air Quality Program
208-843-9381
| 1-800-720-4089
airquality@nezperce.org |
www.nezperce.org/AirQuality/
Friday, August 28, 2015
Idaho DEQ Air Quality Forecast and Caution
DEQ air quality advisories remain in effect over this weekend for the following counties of Idaho outside of reservation boundaries:
All open burning is prohibited under these regional air quality advisories, including campfires, recreational fires, weed control burning, and residential burning. Please see the following for additional information:
http://www.deq.idaho.gov/air-quality/monitoring/daily-reports-and-forecasts/
· Boundary
· Bonner
· Kootenai
· Benewah
· Shoshone
· Latah
· Clearwater
· Nez Perce
· Lewis
· Idaho
· Lemhi
· Custer
All open burning is prohibited under these regional air quality advisories, including campfires, recreational fires, weed control burning, and residential burning. Please see the following for additional information:
http://www.deq.idaho.gov/air-quality/monitoring/daily-reports-and-forecasts/
Closures in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest
For information on forest closure orders this weekend due to wildfire activity in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest (Priest Lake, Bonners Ferry, Sandpoint, Coeur d'Alene, and St. Joe Ranger Districts), please refer to the following website:
http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/ipnf/learning/safety-ethics/?cid=stelprd3850265
http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/ipnf/learning/safety-ethics/?cid=stelprd3850265
08/28/2015 Idaho DEQ Smoke Forecast
Updated
Noon MDT Friday, August 28, 2015
Valid
through: Noon MDT Monday, August 31, 2015
Smoke
Outlook
Air quality is currently ranging from
Good to Moderate in southern Idaho and Moderate to Hazardous across northern
Idaho with higher impacts across the Clearwater Basin Drainage, the northern
Panhandle, and the Salmon-Challis area. Air
quality is forecast to remain in the Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups to
Unhealthy category for the 24hr standard across central and northern Idaho
today and into this weekend. Impacts are
from regional fires burning in Washington State, California, Oregon, and a
multitude of local fires in the Clearwater drainage, the northern Panhandle,
and Central Idaho Mountains.
Nez
Perce Reservation: 24-hour monitor readings range from Unhealthy for
Sensitive Groups to Hazardous. Hourly readings are fluctuating from
Moderate to Hazardous, depending on location and wind direction. The Nez
Perce Tribe will continue their Air Quality Advisory. Please contact the
Nez Perce Tribe for more information: airquality@nezperce.org.
For the remainder of Friday, expect partly cloudy skies and stronger
winds than experienced earlier in the week.
There may be an isolated thunderstorm develop over elevated regions
across the state this afternoon. On
Saturday, a strong, dry, cold front will move into Idaho and bring gusty winds but
no major precipitation. This will signal
the beginning of a pattern change as an active weather pattern begins to
establish with several minor lobes of energy entering the area this weekend and
into next week (likely Wednesday). Precipitation
and storms are likely across the northern Panhandle on Saturday with scattered
storms possible across central Idaho, while southern Idaho has only a slight
chance for afternoon storm development this weekend. This frontal passage is expected sometime
tomorrow from morning to evening in the northern and southern parts of the
state, respectively. The high winds serve
to bring smoke into the region as well as dust to northern Idaho as it is
unlikely to receive enough precipitation to limit lofting.
The strongest smoke impacts are
occurring across the Clearwater drainages, Central Idaho Mountains, and the
northern Panhandle. This will continue tonight
and become even stronger on Saturday as high winds provide an increase to fire
activity across the Columbia Plateau and into central and northern Idaho. Expect to experience impacts from the Canada
border south to the Salmon River corridor with some drainage impacts into the
McCall and Garden Valley areas tonight. The
highest impacts are expected to be within the drainages of the Clearwater,
Salmon, Lochsa, down into the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley. The northern tier of the Purcell Trench will
also continue to experience high impacts throughout the entire weekend. In southern Idaho, impacts will be greatest within
the drainages around McCall and Garden Valley and generally north of a line
running from Weiser to Salmon. Conditions
have generally improved across southern Idaho with values in the Good and
Moderate range across all monitors except for McCall and Salmon, which are
reading Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups and Hazardous, respectively. Nighttime drainage smoke will continue to
provide impacts in regions near and downwind of the fires. Impacts in the central Idaho region will continue
to be quite strong as winds will serve to increase fire activity on Saturday. As a result of increased fire activity,
strong impacts are also expected to occur within the Purcell Trench across the
Rathdrum Prairie and north into Canada with more clearing over the open
expanses.
DEQ Air Quality Advisories:
Idaho DEQ has issued an Air Quality Advisory:
·
Coeur d’Alene Regional Office for Boundary, Bonner, Kootenai, Shoshone, and Benewah Counties through
August 31st at 12:00noon when
it will be extended or lifted.
·
Lewiston Regional Office for Latah,
Nez Perce, Lewis, Clearwater, Idaho Counties, river corridors and surrounding
areas (off the Nez Perce Reservation) through
August 31st at 10:00am when it will be extended or lifted.
·
Idaho Falls Regional Office for Lemhi and Custer Counties until August 28th at 3:00pm when it will be
extended or lifted.
The USFS installed monitors in Riggins, ID, Halfway, OR, and
Newport, WA. The information can be found at http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/smoke.pl
·
Riggins, ID monitor is Smoke
USFS R1-306
·
Halfway, OR monitor is Smoke
#68
·
Newport, WA monitor is Smoke
E-BAM 925
·
Users should be aware that the
Forest Service site reports the data in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). To convert from UTC to Mountain Daylight
Time, subtract 6 hours.
Smoke
forecasts are dependent on predicted fire growth and weather. If
conditions change unexpectedly, impacts could occur. When visibility
starts to go below 5 miles, sensitive groups should minimize outdoor
activities. Everyone else should minimize prolonged or physical activity
outdoors. Visit the Idaho Smoke Blog for
more information at http://idsmoke.blogspot.com/
Your eyes are your best tools to determine if it’s safe to be outside. Even if you smell smoke, the air quality may still be good.
AQI Category
|
Visibility (miles)
|
Good
|
11+
|
Moderate
|
6-10
|
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
|
3-5
|
Unhealthy
|
1½ -2¾
|
Very Unhealthy
|
1-1¼
|
Hazardous
|
Less than 1
|
How to estimate air quality based on visibility for areas without an air quality monitor or airport visibility estimate:
a. Face away from the sun.
b. Determine the limit of your visible range by looking for targets at known distances (miles).
c. Visible range is when an object you can easily see in the distance disappears.
d. Use the visibility values above to determine the local wildfire smoke category.
Friday,
August 28, 2015
Air
Quality Advisory Remains in Effect on the Nez Perce Reservation
Description of
Air Quality Event:
Due
to wildfire smoke from local and regional wildfires, the Air Quality
Advisory issued for the Nez Perce Reservation remains in effect. Wildfire
smoke will continue to move in and out of the area during the day and
overnight.
Affected Areas:
All
areas on the Nez Perce Reservation.
Air Quality
Index (AQI) Category:
Both
24-hour and 1-hour monitor readings can be expected to range from the “Moderate”
to “Hazardous” category Friday through the weekend. Local air quality will improve and worsen as
smoke moves in and out of communities. Some areas may be more impacted than
others, so please take appropriate precautions. For AQI health-related information,
visit Community Guide
to Staying Healthy During Wildfire Smoke Events.
Restrictions:
No
EPA/NPT burn permits will be approved.
Next Update:
These
restrictions are in effect through 10:00am Monday, August 31st,
2015.
Nez Perce Tribe
ERWM Air Quality Program
208-843-9381
| 1-800-720-4089
airquality@nezperce.org |
www.nezperce.org/AirQuality/
Thursday, August 27, 2015
08/26/2015 Idaho DEQ Smoke Forecast
Updated
Noon MDT Thursday, August 27, 2015
Valid
through: Noon MDT Friday, August 28, 2015
Smoke
Outlook
Air quality is currently ranging from
Good to Hazardous across all of Idaho with higher impacts across the Clearwater
Basin Drainage, the Treasure Valley, and the Salmon-Challis area. Air quality is forecast to remain in the
Moderate to Unhealthy category for the 24hr standard across central Idaho. Impacts are from regional fires burning in
Washington State, California, Oregon, and a multitude of local fires in the
Clearwater drainage, the northern Panhandle, and Central Idaho Mountains.
Nez
Perce Reservation: 24-hour monitor readings range from Unhealthy to
Hazardous. Hourly readings are fluctuating from Moderate to Hazardous,
depending on location and wind direction. The Nez Perce Tribe will
continue their Air Quality Advisory. Please contact the Nez Perce Tribe
for more information: airquality@nezperce.org.
An upper level low pressure system located off the coast of Oregon and
Washington is flattening the upper level ridge and allowing for some moisture
to enter the area; however, the atmosphere is fairly stable which is limiting
the convective potential today. No major weather changes are expected until the end of
this week with increasingly unsettled weather with the chance for afternoon
thunderstorms across the Bitterroot Range this afternoon. On Saturday, a strong,
dry, cold front will move into Idaho and bring gusty winds and no major
precipitation. This will signal the
beginning of a pattern change as an active weather pattern begins to establish
with several minor lobes of energy entering the area this weekend and into next
week.
The strongest smoke impacts are
occurring across the Clearwater drainages, Central Idaho Mountains as well as southwest
Idaho. This will continue into Saturday. Expect to experience impacts from the Canada
border south to the Salmon River corridor.
The highest impacts are expected to be within the drainages of the
Clearwater, Salmon, Lochsa, down into the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley. In southern Idaho, impacts will be greatest within
the drainages around McCall and Garden Valley and generally north of a line
running from Weiser to Salmon. Conditions
have generally improved across southern Idaho with values in the Good and
Moderate range across all monitors. Nocturnal
drainage flow will contribute to greater impacts in all of Idaho tonight,
especially within the drainages into the Lewiston-Clarkston area and the Snake
River Plain off the Central Idaho Mountains.
High level smoke is expected from California fires as the southwesterly
flow pattern continues to drive the weather over Idaho. Impacts in the central Idaho region will continue
to be quite strong as temperatures and winds will serve to increase fire
activity.
DEQ Air Quality Advisories:
Idaho DEQ has issued an Air Quality Advisory:
·
Coeur d’Alene Regional Office for Boundary, Bonner, Kootenai, Shoshone, and Benewah Counties through
August 28th at 12:00noon when it will be extended or lifted.
·
Lewiston Regional Office for Latah,
Nez Perce, Lewis, Clearwater, Idaho Counties, river corridors and surrounding
areas (off the Nez Perce Reservation) through
August 28th at 10:00am when it will be extended or lifted.
·
Idaho Falls Regional Office for Lemhi County until August 27th at 12:00 noon when it
will be extended or lifted.
Your eyes are your best tools to determine if it’s safe to be outside. Even if you smell smoke, the air quality may still be good.
How to estimate air quality based on visibility for areas without an air quality monitor or airport visibility estimate:
AQI Category
|
Visibility (miles)
|
Good
|
11+
|
Moderate
|
6-10
|
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
|
3-5
|
Unhealthy
|
1½ -2¾
|
Very Unhealthy
|
1-1¼
|
Hazardous
|
Less than 1
|
How to estimate air quality based on visibility for areas without an air quality monitor or airport visibility estimate:
a. Face away from the sun.
b. Determine the limit of your visible range by looking for targets at known distances (miles).
c. Visible range is when an object you can easily see in the distance disappears.
d. Use the visibility values above to determine the local wildfire smoke category.
Thursday,
August 27, 2015
Air
Quality Advisory Remains in Effect on the Nez Perce Reservation
Description of
Air Quality Event:
Due
to wildfire smoke from local and regional wildfires, the Air Quality
Advisory issued for the Nez Perce Reservation remains in effect. Wildfire
smoke will continue to move in and out of the area during the day and
overnight.
Affected Areas:
All
areas on the Nez Perce Reservation.
Air Quality
Index (AQI) Category:
Both
24-hour and 1-hour monitor readings can be expected to range from the “Unhealthy
for Sensitive Groups” to “Hazardous” category. Local air quality will improve and worsen as
smoke moves in and out of communities. Some areas may be more impacted than others,
so please take appropriate precautions. For AQI
health-related information, visit Community Guide
to Staying Healthy During Wildfire Smoke Events.
Restrictions:
No
EPA/NPT burn permits will be approved.
Next Update:
Conditions
will be reassessed tomorrow morning with an air quality update issued by 10:00am
Friday, August 28th, 2015.
Nez Perce Tribe
ERWM Air Quality Program
208-843-9381
| 1-800-720-4089
airquality@nezperce.org |
www.nezperce.org/AirQuality/
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