Butte-Silver Bow health department presents 2025 'Smoke Ready Butte' wildfire smoke outreach updates

Jenny Ellis, the FEP coordinator at the Butte-Silver Bow Health Department, and Jackie Thompson, a registered sanitarian, presented updates to the county's wildfire smoke response plan — branded "Smoke Ready Butte" — to the Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners.

The presentation summarized new national and local data, described ongoing and pilot programs to reduce smoke exposure, and outlined outreach plans targeted at vulnerable groups. The county health department said the plan, originally developed in 2021 with EPA collaboration, has been updated with recent fire and air-quality data and program results.

Ellis said national wildfire acreage data from the National Interagency Fire Center covering 1983–2024 show an upward trend and noted the Northwest region (including Montana) recorded the most acres burned in 2024. She also presented local air-quality trends based on the county's single EPA monitor at the old Greeley School, saying annual average "unhealthy air" days rose from about three per year in an earlier period to more than two weeks per year between 2020 and 2022. Ellis attributed health vulnerabilities to higher rates of chronic respiratory disease locally and cited a community health needs assessment done with St. James showing 37% of county residents reported living with three or more chronic health conditions.

The presenters described several programs and pilot projects. The health department operates a free, seasonal air-purifier loan program that started with 30–50 units; Ellis said about 10–12 people had already signed up on the first day of intake. The department also installed a color-coded air-quality flag at the Public Health Building and said it hopes to expand flag locations.

Thompson described a multi-year partnership with Montana Tech graduate students that tested the effectiveness of portable HEPA air cleaners and PurpleAir monitors in preexisting community buildings. She said PurpleAir monitors were placed inside and outside three sites — Saint Anne's Parish Hall, First Presbyterian Church community hall and the Maroon Activities Center — and that two of the three sites (Saint Anne's Parish Hall and First Presbyterian) kept particulate levels below the 35 µg/m3 threshold during monitored smoke events once HEPA cleaners were used. The Maroon Activities Center's larger, more active gym space did not reliably stay below that threshold during the study period.

Speakers emphasized geographic variability within the county and described an expanded network of low-cost PurpleAir monitors placed from Melrose to Ramsey and uptown to provide finer-grained readings than the single EPA monitor can provide. The presenters noted that PurpleAir data are visible on AirNow smoke maps.

Ellis reviewed outreach plans organized by pre-season (May–June), during season (July–October) and post-season activities. Targeted outreach will include presentations to assisted-living facilities, the senior center, Action Inc., childcare providers via the 4 C's, updated brochures at the Office of Planning and Assistance (OPA) office, the library and community health center, and a flyer for new-parent packets developed with the Intermountain Family Birthing Center. The health department also plans displays and demonstrations — for example, DIY box-filter demonstrations at hardware stores — and will solicit post-season feedback via surveys or listening sessions.

Commissioner Shea moved to place communication number 2025-221 (the presentation) on file. The motion passed on a recorded vote of 10–0.

Why it matters: County health officials said wildfire smoke exposures are increasing and that targeted local programs — monitoring, temporary clean-air spaces and low-cost filtration — can reduce short-term exposure for vulnerable residents. The presentation combined local air-quality data, public-health vulnerability statistics and pilot study results to justify expanded outreach and monitoring.