20 November 2018 — 1618 mst

Columbia Falls may become a PM10 air quality attainment area

In its industrial heyday, with the aluminum plant spitting fluorides, lumber mills and wood products factories spewing particulates, and unpaved roads and parking lots sending clouds of dust in the air, Columbia Falls was a locus of dirty air, and a violator of the Clean Air Act. Formally, it became a non-attainment area for PM10 particulates.

Now, after years of emissions reductions, the town’s airshed meets the criteria for an air quality attainment area, and Montana’s government is petitioning the federal government for redesignation to that standard.

The following table and graph are from the detailed document supporting redesignation:

One surprising fact: railroad locomotives are the Flathead’s largest source of diesel emissions.

The public comment period closes on 17 December.