Oregon Smoke Information

Originally posted on DEQ’s Air, Land & Water blog . With a hot, dry summer forecast ahead of us, wildfire season has already begun in many counties across Oregon. As such, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has been working with a group of state agencies and regional organizations, including the National Weather Service , the Oregon Department of Forestry , the Lane Regional Air Protection Agency and the Oregon Health Authority’s Public Health Division , among many others, to prepare for busy months ahead. This includes reviewing the management and protocols for monitoring air quality and notifying the public of severe smoke events. It is crucial that the public also prepares for wildfire season, as heavy smoke can irritate eyes and lungs and worsen some medical conditions. Following DEQ’s Air Quality Index is the best way to understand current local conditions. It is a color-coded map that tracks air quality and provides health-based recommendations. The AQI is als...

Originally posted on DEQ ’ s Air, Land & Water blog . It’s Air Quality Awareness Week and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality is celebrating. This year’s theme is Better Air, Better Health! The goal is to promote an increased understanding of Oregon’s air and DEQ’s projects and programs dedicated to improving its quality. We also want to encourage people to check the Air Quality Index daily. DEQ has been working to improve Oregon’s air quality for more than 50 years. While there have been advancements, we still face many challenges. Weather and climate greatly affect our air quality during inversions and wildfires, but emissions from transportation, agriculture and industrial sources dominate at other times. Around the state, people can take an active part in reducing air pollution. Each day of Air Quality Awareness Week focuses on a specific issue that affects our health and air quality: Monday, May 4 – Wildfires & Smoke Tuesday, May 5 – Asthma & ...

Oregon's Air Quality Index showed good air quality much of summer 2019. After two record-breaking seasons, Oregon saw a much-needed reprieve from wildfire smoke this summer. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued only one air quality advisory this year due to wildfire smoke. The advisory was for the area downwind of the Milepost 97 Fire in southwest Oregon, and lasted only a week. By contrast: in both 2017 and 2018, wildfire smoke inundated Oregon communities off and on for months. DEQ issued and reissued air quality advisories for much of the state throughout the summer. Smoke flowed into communities from fires burning across the Pacific Northwest, California and British Columbia. Southern and Central Oregon were the hardest hit parts of the state, but the Portland area also experienced smoke like never before. At one point in August 2018, all but two Oregon counties were under an air quality advisory due to unhealthy levels of wildfire smoke. But this ...