The air we breathe

A new study by the American Lung Association found the wildfires that routinely paint the Coeur d'Alene summer sky a smoky haze play a significant role in the community's outdoor air pollution. 

Based on three years of United States Environmental Protection Data, the 2021 ALA "State of the Air" report card ranked the Coeur d'Alene-Spokane Valley area as 11th worst in the nation for short-term particle pollution levels. 

Particle pollution, the ALA describes, is a mixture of "tiny bits of solids and liquids in the air coming from sources like factories, power plants, motor vehicles and equipment, wildfires, wood stoves, or residential fireplaces."

Air particle pollution can lead to several types of respiratory damage, Dr. Todd Hoopman, pulmonologist and critical care doctor at Kootenai Health, said in an email. 

"Specifically, air pollution can result in increased levels of inflammation in the lungs, which puts people at risk for respiratory complications including asthma and pneumonia," Hoopman said. "More frequent exposures and high levels of particle exposures can result in increased levels of inflammation and subsequent damage."

The study noted that people of color, those living in poverty, people with underlying health conditions like asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, and smokers are especially vulnerable to illness and death from pollutant exposure.

The ALA stated that over 810,000 Idahoans could have their health affected by pollution.

"Outdoor air pollution is particularly problematic for patients with chronic lung disease including COPD and asthma," Hoopman said. "Older patients oftentimes can develop more severe complications from air pollution exposures including pneumonia, hospital admission and impaired lung function requiring oxygen usage."

ALA Senior Director of Advocacy Carrie Nyssen grew up in eastern Washington and remembers when her family would go into Spokane to go school shopping. She recalls driving down Sunset Highway seeing the hazy, cloudy, dirty air. She is asthmatic and once panicked because she had forgotten her inhaler.

"Exposing any air pollutant or toxin, whether it's secondhand smoke, aerosols, wildfire smoke, smoke from wood fireplaces, is harmful to lungs," Nyssen said. "At the ALA, we always say, 'If you can't breathe, nothing else matters.'"

A significant contributor to the air quality, Nyssen noted, is seasonal wildfires.

The ALA 2021 American Lung Association State Of The Air report card found that Idaho, as with many Pacific Northwest and western states, is struggling with unhealthy air quality due to wildfires. Fifteen of the 25 worst cities for year-round particle pollution are in the western U.S. — eight of those in California, three in the Southwest and four in the Pacific Northwest.

On an everyday basis, Idaho Department of Environmental Quality Coeur d'Alene Regional Office Air Quality Manager Shawn Sweetapple said the air we breathe is "really good" compared to national standards. He said he was surprised to see Coeur d'Alene on the ALA's list.

IDEQ Air Quality Data Bureau Chief Steve Miller said it's likely the data is predominantly taken from Spokane's regulatory monitors. Coeur d'Alene, he said, has consistently met EPA air quality standards. 

"We're being lumped in," Miller said. "It's representing the bigger metropolitan statistical area. The data entry could be many, many miles away. It's certainly not our monitor."

The heavy hitter for Coeur d'Alene's air quality is wildfires, Miller said. The risk, Sweetapple noted, is that wildfires are uncontrolled and can include dangerous particles. 

"They're finding that the impact from wildfires, though short in relative time, can affect a person's health more than we thought," Sweetapple said. "Wildfires can burn buildings, vehicles, other things than just the forest." 

Miller said the proper handling of wildfires is an "all hands on deck" situation across multiple government agencies. He recommended that the best way to do independent research is to monitor the Air Quality Index (AQI) at www.airnow.gov.

Nyssen agreed, noting that it's essential the public becomes aware of how they can cut their emitted pollution and base their outdoor activity on the level of hazardous air quality. 

"Avoidance of exposure to high levels of air pollution and air particles is paramount for individuals with chronic lung disease or those at risk for complications from air pollution," said Hoopman, the physician. "It is important during fire season and other times when the air quality is compromised to stay indoors and avoid exposure to poor air quality, particularly during the warmer middle parts of the day."

Study info: www.lung.org