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Region 1 Air Resource & Wilderness
Thomas Dzomba – Air Fire & Aviation Mark Story – Gallatin NF
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Objectives Overview of Region 1 Air Program
AQRV/WAQV Monitoring & Results Emerging Air Quality Issues
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Air Quality Responsibilities
meet state and National AQ standards identify, monitor, protect AQRV’s coordinate air quality and smoke management with Montana & Idaho DEQ’s, local AQ agencies, and EPA NEPA disclosure of air quality related effects
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Region 1 Key Air Quality Issues
Urban & Industrial Emissions Oil/Gas Development Regional Haze/Visibility Prescribed and Wildfire Smoke
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Urban and Industrial Emissions
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Oil and Gas Development
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Regional Haze/Visibility
Idaho SIP Montana FIP IMPROVE Monitoring Webcams
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Smoke Management
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Coordination Liaison between FS and regulatory agencies (state/local DEQs/EPA) Work with WO on Smoke and Air Quality Issues MT/ID Airshed Group GYACAP Modeling and Monitoring
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AQRV/WAQV Monitoring Particulate Matter Visibility Lakes Lichens Snow
Precipitation
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R1 has 13 total Wilderness areas
7 Class I A-P S-B CAB Mission Mountains BOB Scapegoat Gates
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Selway Bitterroot Wilderness
Bob Marshall Wilderness Lee Metcalf Wilderness
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USFS R1 Wilderness Air Quality Monitoring Plan
Mark Story - Gallatin National Forest Thomas Dzomba - USFS R1/R4 Air Fire & Aviation Jill Grenon - Gallatin National Forest & Montana State University February 1, 2008
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USFS R1 Class 1 Wilderness Areas – AQRV’s
monitoring item BMW SGW CMW SBW APW GMW MMW Phase 3 Lakes Upper & Lower Libby Lakes North Kootenai & Shasta Lakes IMPROVE visibility MONT1 & GLAC1* IMPROVE site MONT1 IMPROVE site CABI1 & GLAC1* IMPROVE site SULA1 & SAWT1* IMPROVE site SULA1 IMPROVE site GAMO1 IMPROVE site MONT1 & GLAC1* IMPROVE site Lichens 12 reference sites – 2002 & 2003, 2010 3 reference sites – 1992, 2010 16 reference sites – , 2008 10 reference sites – 1992, 2008 3 reference sites – , 2008 4 reference sites – 2002, 2010 NADP Glacier NP MT05 NADP site* Glacier NP MT05* and Clancy MT07* NADP sites Glacier NP MT05* and Priest River ExpFst ID02* NADP sites Lost Trail Pass MT97 NADP site Clancy MT07* NADP site Glacier NP MT05 NADP site Snow Chemistry USGS snow chemistry sites*
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USFS R1 Class 2 Wilderness Areas – WAQV’s
monitoring item ABW LMW GBW RW WCW GHW Lakes Twin Island & Stepping Stone Phase 3 lakes 3 lakes (2007) 8 lakes (2007) 5 lakes (2007) 3 lakes (2008) IMPROVE visibility YELL2* & NOAB1* IMPROVE sites YELL1* & NOAB1* IMPROVE sites GLAC1* IMPROVE site MONT1 & SULA1 IMPROVE sites SULA1 HECA1* SAWT1* IMPROVE sites Lichens 2 reference sites – 2008 NADP Yellowstone Pk WY08* NADP site Lost Trail Pass MT97 and Yellowstone Pk WY08* NADP sites Glacier NP MT95* NADP site Lost Trail Pass MT97 NADP site Lost Trail Pass MT97, Priest River Exp Fst ID02*, Palouse WA24* NADP sites Snow Chemistry USGS snow chemistry sites* BMW – Bob Marshall Wilderness ABW – Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness SGW – Scapegoat Wilderness LMW – Lee Metcalf Wilderness CMW – Cabinet Mountains Wilderness GBW – Great Bear Wilderness SBW – Selway Bitterroot Wilderness RW – Rattlesnake Wilderness APW – Anaconda Pintler Wilderness WCW – Welcome Creek Wilderness GMW – Gates of the Mountains Wilderness GHW – Gospel Hump Wilderness MMW – Mission Mountains Wilderness * operated by non-USFS agencies sites monitored by USFS R1
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Lichens Long range air quality monitoring
Collected every 5-7 years by Dr. Larry St. Clair of BYU Will be collected FY
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Rocky Mountain Snowpack Network
Complements network of NADP wetfall sites Collocated with SNOTEL Stations reporting SWE, Air temp max, mins Lake Fork Grizzly Ridge This map of the study area depicts the long-term sites, but is under contruction to include the shorter-term sites like the 2 sites at Banner and Galena Summits, in the Sawtooth Mts of Central Idaho NADP sites over 2400 m selected to have similar ppt regime --only 2 in N Rockies (and 1 was incl at < 2,400m in N-most area where snow-sampling sites are lower, too) --2 in Central Rockies Music Pass
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Dissolved Ammonium Highest levels of ammonium generally in Central Subregion—esp Targhee Pass Yellowstone, and the Tetons Lionshead (11.0 ueq/L) West Yellowstone, offroad (12.1 ueq/L) Highest NH4 in region from snowpacked roadway at local-source site (over-snow veh., West Yellowstone, 15.6 ueq/L). Other Ag areas: North-central Colo. Mts, Sierra Madre, S. Colo. and northern New Mex. Lions’ West Units in ueq/L; spot diam linear to conc Downwind of Snake Plain Ag area; San Luis Valley, Colo.; Green River/Little Snake River Ag lands Convert to mg/l, div by 55.4
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Dissolved Nitrate 15K Highest levels of nitrate generally in Southern Subregion—esp North-central Mts, Sierra Madre, NW Colo., and northern New Mex. Also in Uintas, Targhee Pass, and S. Pass at lower end of Wind River Mts Divide Peak (12.4 ueq/L) Grizzly Ridge (12.1 ueq/L) 7.6K 4.6K 48K 105 Divide Pk 48K Grizzly 45K Typical pattern in S Subreg—CO, S. WY & NM, lotsa energy devel; metro Denver corridor but 2 new sites (2007 on) in Uintahs shoe strong NO3 signal High conc at W end Yellowstone (Lionshead, 8.9, West Ent, 7.9 ueq/L) consistent Convert to mg, div by 16.7 38K 49K 49K
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Total Mercury Mt. Belmont Highest levels of mercury (dissolved + particulate) generally in Southern Subregion—esp near 4 Corners Other distinct signals appear in Montana from Chief Joe Pass eastward past Helena to Kings Hill, and at Targhee Pass Slumgullion Pass (31.3 ng/L) Mt. Belmont (20.3 ng/L) Here we see an expected signal in S Subreg where lots of coal-fired generation occurs. Curious signal in MT, however, which matches that of SO4. Centralia plant in WA was huge SO2 emitter until 2002 (80K+), and by 2005, only 3 or 4K…something else? This likely is reflected in 2 Idaho sites Slumgullion
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Wilderness Area # Lakes Avg. ANC (µeq/l) Low ANC (µeq/l) Absaroka-Beartooth 641 83 15 Anaconda-Pintler 100 429 46 Bob Marshall 119 811 154 Cabinet Mountains 88 169 5 Gospel Hump 86 82 24 Great Bear 36 1376 680 Hells Canyon 29 142 28 Lee Metcalf 111 232 68 Mission Mountains 151 449 73 Rattlesnake 52 214 River of No Return 21 93 48 Selway-Bitterroot 315 18
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Cabinet Mountain Wilderness
Lower Libby Upper Libby Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness North Kootenai Shasta Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness Stepping Stone Twin Island
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Statistics SAS Institute statistical software was used to run analyses following draft USFS Data Analysis Protocol (DAP) recommendations in coordination with Lori Porth, RMRS Statistician Non-parametric test that can work with non-normal distributions and are not affected by errors, gross outliers, or missing data in the data set. A trend is detectable and considered significant if it meets our designated alpha level of α = 0.1 also shown as 90% confidence level. Additional confidence levels used were 95 (α = 0.05), 99 (α = 0.01), and 99.9 (α = 0.001). (Salmi et.al 2002).
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National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP)
Chemistry of rain and snow Lost Trail Pass MT97
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NADP sites in and around MT
Glacier Clancy Lost Trail Pass Little Bighorn Tower Junction Craters of the Moon
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Annual NH4+ at NADP sites
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IMPROVE SITES GLAC1 CABI1 MONT1 GAMO1 SULA1 YELL2
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Bitterroot Valley (Stevi RD)
Bob Marshall (Seeley Lake RD) Gates of the Mountains (Helena RD)
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Yell2 IMPROVE site on a clear day and on a hazy day
Spectrum Series dv=0 Bext=10 SVR=390 Spectrum Series dv=17 Bext=52 SVR=75
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Annual Trends in SVR at IMPROVE sites
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YELL2 dv 20% best and worst days
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Conclusions Trend interpretation, particularly cause/effect, is difficult and complex Lake ANC decrease not statistically validated except at Stepping Stone Lake. The pH increasing trend and decrease in lake cation trends are not readily explainable Consistent NH4 increase trend at all of the NADP sites. This may be partially due to increased agriculture emissions such as feedlots in E. Oregon and E. Washington
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Conclusions NO3 trend increases in lakes and NADP not as consistent as NH4 increase Consistent decrease SO4 at NADP sites is consistent with US trends the last 2 decades with reduced industrial sulfate emissions Consistent improvement in visibility at all of the IMPROVE sites as expressed in increased SVR, decreased deciviews, and reduced extinction 20% best and worst seasonal visibility day trends visually correlates well with wildfire emissions in USFS Region 1
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Emerging Air Quality Issues
Regional Haze – visibility targets Airborn contaminants Climate change PM2.5 standards Ozone standards Critical Loads
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Western Airborn Contaminants Project
NPS
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Climate Projections for North America
Northern Rockies: Roughly 3-4° F average annual warming by 2050 and 6° F by 2100; no change to ~ 5% increase in annual precipitation; Drier summers and slightly wetter winters (DJF); Potential for more dramatic extremes.
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Emerging Air Quality Issues
Regional Haze – visibility targets Airborn contaminants Climate change PM2.5 standards Ozone standards Critical Loads
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