Environment

LRAPA using $1M federal grant to tackle dense, smoky air

KLCC | By Brian Bull

Published September 23, 2024 at 4:36 PM PDT

Smoke-filled valley. — In an undated photo provided by LRAPA, the Oakridge area is seen veiled in dense smoke.

Efforts to alleviate smoke issues in the Oakridge-Westfir area are being helped through a $1 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Travis Knudsen is executive director of the Lane Regional Air Protection Agency, which is the recipient of the Environmental Justice Government-to-Government grant. He said it aims to improve the health and well-being of local residents.

“About 30 homes will receive interventions to make the homes less likely to catch on fire, more able to keep smoke out, so people can protect their indoor air quality during smoke intrusions," Knudsen told KLCC. "And also some funding with Lane County Public Health to do some studying into what are the health impacts and what is hopefully the cost to those health impacts on our healthcare system.”

Oakridge air quality suffers between wintertime wood-burning stove smoke, and seasonal wildfires. It’s also one of the poorest communities in Oregon, so Knudsen says this three-year grant is helping those without access to seasoned firewood, ductless heat pumps, and air purifiers.

Clear rural city area. — In another undated photo of Oakridge, the community is seen without what LRAPA calls an "AM inversion", which draws and retains smoke across the area.

The project runs from July 2024 to June 2027. In an email sent to KLCC, LRAPA outlined the five main strategies of the grant:

1) Implementing home hardening and smoke proofing interventions,

2) Coordinating a Smoke Community Response Plan,

3) Supporting a Wood Waste Program and conducting a Wood Products Feasibility Study,

4) Assessing health and morbidity impacts of wildfire smoke on Eastern Lane County, and

5) Developing a Best Practices and Lessons Learned Toolkit. Key partners include South Willamette Solutions, Lane County Public Health, and the City of Oakridge.

The project also aims to address "disproportionate environmental impacts" in the Oakridge area, which ranks high in cancer risk and respiratory hazard indicators.

"By focusing on reducing wildfire and smoke vulnerabilities, improving air quality, and promoting community resilience, this grant seeks to achieve meaningful environmental and public health results for residents," concludes the statement.