Beachie Creek and Holiday Farm Fire areas to receive community air monitoring
Community air monitoring is set to begin in two new locations later this month. The Beachie Creek and Holiday Farm Fire areas will both receive community air monitoring. This monitoring is in addition to the dust control and air quality monitoring that has been part of the cleanup process at each ash and debris removal site.
Protecting air quality is a priority for all fire-affected sites. Community air monitoring is additional confirmation that all other methods of air monitoring are effective. Experts have prioritized Oregon as a whole when determining which sites to choose for further air quality monitoring at the community level.
Sites that have higher populations in condensed areas are strong candidates for community air monitoring. The first fire-affected site chosen for this type of air monitoring was the Almeda Fire area. The Almeda Fire area contains 60% of the total home sites signed up for the state-led cleanup program. Many of those home sites are within air pollution-sensitive communities.
There have been no issues or exceedances with community air monitoring to date. Read our Debris Management Task Force updates for weekly air quality monitoring reports.
Community Air Quality FAQ
What is community air monitoring?
Community air monitoring involves setting up air monitoring in a central location away from debris removal operations — this is different from the air monitoring done at the debris site.
Which factors help experts determine where community air monitoring should happen?
Environmental justice/demographic indicators Communities of color, children, elderly, low income.
Potential exposure to receptor populations Certain members of the population are more sensitive to air pollution than others. In addition, pollutants may affect more people if they are present in areas where people congregate. Locations of concern include childcare facilities; educational facilities; health care facilities; places of worship; correctional facilities; residential care facilities; and city, county or state parks.
Population density The population density of an area directly indicates the number of people who may be potentially exposed to a pollutant.
Complaints Odor complaints, for example, do not necessarily indicate a health risk but do suggest the presence of pollutants that may have adverse effects.
Who should I reach out to if I have questions, concerns or see dust? If you have any questions, concerns about dust in the air, please reach out to the wildfire debris cleanup hotline 503-934-1700 or email odot.wildfire@odot.state.or.us.
