DEQ Enhances Air Quality Monitoring in Eastern Montana

In October the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) installed a new permanent air quality monitor in Glasgow, expanding the availability of relevant, valuable and timely air quality information to Valley County residents.  

Installation of the Glasgow monitor marked the completion of work supported by an EPA-administered award for Enhanced Continuous Ambient Air Monitoring. The grant was used to establish new permanent air quality stations in Havre, Glendive, Choteau and Glasgow. Existing monitoring sites in Dillon, Cut Bank and Billings Lockwood also received equipment upgrades. Data from the monitors is now available through DEQ’s Today’s Air website and EPA’s AirNow Fire and Smoke map. 

Given that wildfire smoke is a principal public health concern from air pollution in Montana, DEQ used the grant to focus on enhancing wildfire smoke monitoring capabilities. Wildfire smoke is measured by tracking tiny particles, known as PM2.5. Due to a number of factors, such as the location of the fire, local weather patterns and land formations, wildfire smoke can vary from community to community. The new monitors make information about local PM2.5 concentrations readily available to more Montanans, enabling them to make informed decisions about air quality and their health. Before installation of the Glasgow monitor, Malta and Sidney were the closest federally certified monitoring sites. 

Montana’s Air Quality Monitoring Program works with local agencies to measure air quality throughout the state. Network enhancements advance DEQ’s commitment to maintain an adaptive monitoring network and to provide the best possible assessment of smoke impacts to all Montanans.   

The purpose of Montana’s ambient air monitoring network is to measure, track, and report outdoor air quality conditions statewide as specified by the Montana and Federal Clean Air Acts. Data provides the basis for regulatory decisions and delivers air quality information to local governments, schools and the public. 

To find out more about Montana’s Air Quality Programs or to view data from Glasgow’s air quality monitor on Today’s Air visit: deq.mt.gov/air