Washington Smoke Information

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Kittitas County Press Release

Public Health

For Immediate Release

Changing Weather Conditions Contribute to Air Quality

Kittitas County, WA -08/13/2014 - At 7:00 am today, air quality is good, according to the Washington State Department of Ecology air quality monitoring site in Ellensburg. The range of air quality categories include good, moderate, unhealthy for sensitive groups, unhealthy, very unhealthy, and hazardous.

Changing weather conditions and fire activity contribute to changing air quality. Current air quality monitoring can be seen on the Washington State Department of Ecology air monitoring site: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/enviwa/.

Air quality closer to the active burn site may be poorer air quality than what the monitor in Ellensburg reflects. Information about using visibility to estimate air quality is available at http://www.deq.state.or.us/aq/burning/wildfires/visibility.htm.

The Kittitas County Public Health Department (KCPHD) will continue to provide information regarding air quality status. For more information or questions about air quality please contact the Kittitas County Public Health Department at (509) 962-7515.

Read the full press release at http://www.co.kittitas.wa.us/uploads/news/press-releases/5540/Changing Weather Conditions Contribute to Air Quality.doc.pdf.

Kittitas County, from the Cascades to the Columbia, and online at http://www.co.kittitas.wa.us

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For more information:
Kasey Knutson, Public Information Officer, 509-962-7515

Notice: All email sent to this address will be received by the Kittitas County
email system and may be subject to public disclosure under Chapter 42.56
RCW and to archiving and review.

message id: 38eb45916c6dcbdac24bb8719d004a14

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

8/12/2014 How to see 3 days of air quality warning values

Did you know anyone can access the charts that show 3 days of air quality values from the state monitoring network?

Here's how:
1. View the Washington Department of Ecology's monitoring site map here: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/enviwa/Default.htm
2. Click on the colored dot that represents the monitor you're interested in (grey dots indicate the data is not available).
3. You'll see an image like the one below. Click on "View Site Information" at the bottom of the pop-up box.

4. Next you'll see a screen that includes an image that looks a bit like a speedometer, click on the speedometer.

5. You'll get another image of the speedometer but you're almost there, click one last time on the speedometer.

6. And you're there! Now you have a view of 3 days worth of air quality monitoring values converted into the WAQA health warning scale.

-Note that some monitoring sites in Washington have instruments that monitor ozone and/or PM10 pollution. For smoke we focus on PM2.5. (Notice that "PM2.5" is indicated somewhere on the images beginning with the speedometers.)

-Also, the most current values shown on the chart use a mathematical calculation to predict the WAQA value so these values may change a bit as actual monitoring data is collected.

8-12-14 Air Quality Report

Smoke Synopsis:
Stagnant conditions of recent days are a little less prominent today as a weather system off the Oregon coast was spinning moisture and greater instability across eastern Washington on Monday night and Tuesday. The atmosphere will become very unstable Tuesday afternoon and night with the possibility for lightning, heavy showers, and gusty outflow winds from thunderstorms. Wednesday will be slightly cooler with more cloud cover, but it will still be fairly warm and humid and another round of strong thunderstorms are possible Wednesday afternoon and night. Yesterday saw some of the worst air quality over the region in several weeks. Smoke dispersion will improve a little today and Wednesday, but overall air quality improvement this week is expected to be gradual in most locations. Smoke from fires outside the state may occasionally impact cities close to state borders, to varying extents. Western Washington mostly remained smoke free until plumes from eastern Washington drifted over the Cascades yesterday. Areas along the Puget Sound corridor might continue to see smoke over the next few days, mostly from local wildfires.
Air Quality Outlook:
Site	Tuesday August 12, 2014	Wednesday August 13, 2014	Thursday August 14, 2014	Comments
Colville	USG	USG	USG
Wellpinit	USG	USG	USG
Omak	Very Unhealthy	Very Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Malott	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Brewster	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Winthrop	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Twisp	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Chelan	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Entiat	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Plain	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Leavenworth	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Wenatchee	USG	USG	USG
Ellensburg	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Yakima	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate
NOTE – in table above “USG” stands for “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” For detailed information about the color coded air quality categories, please see: Washington Air Quality Advisory for Smoke and Other Fine Particle Air Pollution En Español: El Índice de la Calidad de Aire de Washington para Humo y Otra Contaminación del Aire causadas por Partículas Finas
Warning: These data have been obtained from automated instruments and have not been subjected to a quality assurance review to determine their accuracy. They are presented for public awareness and should not be considered final. Conditions such as power outages and equipment malfunctions can produce invalid data.

¹ Since wildfires often occur in remote areas, air monitoring equipment may not be available. The following table provides a quick method to assess air quality in your area. For more detailed information you can go to the following site: http://www.deq.state.or.us/aq/burning/wildfires/visibility.htm

Air Quality Advisory 9 am

Air Quality Advisory Tuesday 8/12/14 9:00 am

Smoke levels will vary throughout the day in some communities…

Chelan, Leavenworth and Entiat “Unhealthy”

Wenatchee “Unhealthy for Sensitive Populations”

When air quality is in the “Unhealthy” range everyone is at risk of being affected by the smoke. Outdoor physical activities should be cancelled. At this point everyone should limit exposure to outside air and do not do anything that would increase your breathing rate, people should avoid any exertion. It is best to stay indoors if you have asthma, diabetes, lung or heart disease, have a respiratory infection, or have had a stroke. Infants, pregnant women and people over 65 should also stay indoors. Symptoms can include headache, dizziness, wheezing and shortness of breath. The general population may also experience these symptoms.

When air quality is in the unhealthy for sensitive populations range people with asthma, lung or heart disease and young children may experience health effects. Outdoor activities should be limited by this group. Limit time outdoors. If you are having significant problems, talk to your health care provider. The general public is not likely to be affected.

More information about current air quality conditions and forest fires is located at:

Ecology: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/enviwa/

Forest Service: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov

Chelan Douglas Public Health www.cdhd.wa.gov

FW: Kittitas County Press Release: Air Quality Continues to Fluctuate as a result of Multiple Fires in Kittitas County

Kittitas County Press Release

Public Health

Hold For Release Until 8/15/2014

Air Quality Continues to Fluctuate as a result of Multiple Fires in Kittitas County

Kittitas County, WA -08/12/2014 - According to the Washington State Department of Ecology air quality monitoring site in Ellensburg, the air is "unhealthy for sensitive groups" as of 5:00 am today. The range of air quality categories include good, moderate, unhealthy for sensitive groups, unhealthy, very unhealthy, and hazardous.

During these situations, people with sensitive conditions should limit the time spent outdoors. People with sensitive conditions including the following:

People with pre-existing lung or heart conditions such as asthma or emphysema, diabetes, or other respiratory infections;
People who have had a stroke;
Infants, children, and adults older than 65; and
Pregnant women.

Changing weather conditions and fire activity contribute to the changing air quality. The Kittitas County Public Health Department (KCPHD) will continue to monitor the air quality and encourages residents to do the same. Current air quality monitoring can be seen on the Washington State Department of Ecology air monitoring site: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/enviwa/

N-95 respirator masks are available at KCPHD located at 507 N Nanum Street in suite 102. Adverse health symptoms brought on by poor air quality may include dizziness, headache, difficulty breathing, coughing, excessive phlegm, and nausea. Please contact your health care provider if you experience any of these symptoms.

For more information, please contact the Kittitas County Public Health Department at (509) 962-7515.

Read the full press release at http://www.co.kittitas.wa.us/uploads/news/press-releases/5535/Air Quality Continues to Fluctuate as a result of Multiple Fires.pdf.

Kittitas County, from the Cascades to the Columbia, and online at http://www.co.kittitas.wa.us

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For more information:
Kasey Knutson, Public Information Officer, 509-962-7515

Monday, August 11, 2014

8/11/2014 Widespread poor air quality from smoke

The combination of active fires throughout the Washington Cascades plus hot, stable air is leading to uniformly poor air quality east of the Cascades from Canada to Oregon. Monitor readings for the last 3 days are shown below from North to South (Wenatchee is not shown as the monitor is not functioning properly at this time). All sites show UNHEALTHY air quality, with the exception of Yakima which is a little less impaired and in the UNHEALTHY FOR SENSITIVE GROUPS category. Ellensburg was in the VERY UNHEALTHY category earlier today but has improved somewhat. Health warnings associated with these readings can be found here: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/enviwa/App_AQI/AQI.en-US.pdf

8/11/2014 Kittitas County Recommends Cancelling Outdoor Recreation due to Poor Air Quality

8-11-14 Air Quality Report

Smoke Synopsis:
Stagnant conditions have produced a region-wide haze since Saturday night, with localized areas of dense smoke and very poor air quality. These conditions will gradually improve on Monday with very hot afternoon temperatures and moderately low humidities. Winds will continue to be quite light through Tuesday. Dispersion conditions will slightly improve later Monday, and improve a bit more on Tuesday. The air flow at mountain elevations will be mostly southeasterly through Tuesday, and will increase some by Tuesday. Some very scattered thunderstorms are possible Monday night, and will become more widespread and possibly stronger Tuesday afternoon and night.
Air Quality Outlook:
Site	Monday August 11, 2014	Tuesday August 12, 2014	Wednesday August 13, 2014	Comments
Colville	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	USG
Wellpinit	USG	USG	USG
Omak	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	USG	Seeing impacts from Devil’s Elbow smoke
Malott	USG	USG	USG
Brewster	USG	USG	USG
Winthrop	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Twisp	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Chelan	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	USG
Entiat	Very Unhealthy	Very Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Plain	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	USG
Leavenworth	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	USG
Wenatchee	Unhealthy	Unhealthy	USG
Ellensburg	Very Unhealthy	Very Unhealthy	Unhealthy
Yakima	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate
NOTE – in table above “USG” stands for “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” For detailed information about the color coded air quality categories, please see: Washington Air Quality Advisory for Smoke and Other Fine Particle Air Pollution En Español: El Índice de la Calidad de Aire de Washington para Humo y Otra Contaminación del Aire causadas por Partículas Finas
Warning: These data have been obtained from automated instruments and have not been subjected to a quality assurance review to determine their accuracy. They are presented for public awareness and should not be considered final. Conditions such as power outages and equipment malfunctions can produce invalid data.

¹ Since wildfires often occur in remote areas, air monitoring equipment may not be available. The following table provides a quick method to assess air quality in your area. For more detailed information you can go to the following site: http://www.deq.state.or.us/aq/burning/wildfires/visibility.htm