Air Quality Advisory extended through Sunday
Wildfire smoke across North Idaho has painted the sky red the past several days during sunrise and sunset.
Photo by Kevin Dockter
COEUR d’ALENE — The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality has extended the current Air Quality Advisory for North Idaho through Sunday.
The initial advisory issued Thursday included Kootenai, Shoshone, Bonner and Benewah counties. Boundary County was added to the latest advisory Friday.
The weekend’s air quality is forecasted to remain “unhealthy for sensitive groups” due to high concentrations of PM2.5, a fire atmospheric particulate matter attributed primarily to wildfire smoke.
People with heart or lung conditions, older adults, children and teens can be particularly sensitive to PM2.5, according to AirNow.
The agency advises those in sensitive groups to “reduce your exposure by choosing less strenuous activities or shortening the amount of time you are active outdoors.”
The Kootenai Tribe of Idaho in Bonner County also announced a ban on open burning on the tribal reservation amid air quality concerns in Boundary County.
The burn ban applies to all outdoor burning within the external boundaries of the reservation, regardless of land ownership or tribal membership.
The Coeur d’Alene Tribe is similarly following the open burning ban in place from IDEQ, as the reservation is bordered by both Kootenai and Benewah counties.
The Air Quality Advisory may be extended into next week.