Montana Air Quality

Missoulian: Some Seeley Lake residents staying put despite health risks, warning to leave

Today’s Air

Seeley Lake Air Quality, Yellowstone Visitor Survey, Global Warming Report

Missoulian: Health department: Seeley Lake residents should evacuate due to smoke

Today’s Air
Seeley Lake Station
HEALTH DEPARTMENT WILDFIRE SMOKE RECOMMENDATION FOR SEELEY LAKE RESIDENTS
“Smoke from the Rice Ridge fire is going to continue funneling in Seeley Lake every night, where it enters the buildings and puts every resident at risk of serious health effects - particularly those who are vulnerable to particulate pollution.  Health effects can include reduced lung function, heart attack and stroke.”

Chart showing air quality at Seeley Lake, from Today's Air.

Missoulian: Yellowstone visitors dislike crowding, come for scenery wildlife, survey shows

Yellowstone releases reports about visitors and traffic
Visitor Use Study

·         The majority of visitor groups (91%) included two or more people.

• Most groups (87%) had only visited the park once in the last 12 months.
• Most groups (66%) spent one or more days in the park.
• U.S. visitors comprised 83% of total visitation during the study period.
• International visitors comprised 17% of total visitation during the study period, including many from Europe (49% of international), China (34% of international), and Canada (10% of international).
• Groups indicated viewing natural scenery (96%), viewing wildlife (83%), viewing geysers and other thermal features (78%), experiencing a wild place (72%), and hearing the sounds of nature/quiet (52%) as their most important reasons for visiting Yellowstone.
• Over half of visitors surveyed think that there are too many people in the park.
• Two thirds of visitors surveyed think that parking is a problem, and over half think that the amount of roadway traffic and congestion are problems.
• Most visitors would like to see these challenges addressed through voluntary public transit and expansion of parking options (actions that don't limit use of private vehicles).

Full Report (12mb PDF file)
Complete Survey Responses (2mb PDF file)

Missoulian: 2016 weather report: Extreme and anything but normal

International report confirms 2016 was warmest year on record for the globe
“The 27th annual State of the Climate report has confirmed that 2016 topped 2015 as the warmest year in 137 years of record keeping. The report found that most indicators of climate change continued to follow trends of a warming world, and several, including land and ocean temperatures, sea level and greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere broke records set just one year prior. Last year’s record heat resulted from the combined influence of long-term global warming and a strong El Nino early in the year.”

International report confirms 2016 was warmest year on record for the globe

International report confirms 2016 was warmest year on record for the globe

Birth Certificate to Marry, North Korea

Missoulian: Judge blocks law requiring birth certificates to marry

Vo v. Gee, et al

“Plaintiff provided other official documents to the Clerk of Court including a social security number and a Louisiana state driver’s license, but without a birth certificate as required by Act 436, the state of Louisiana refused to issue him a marriage license.”

Missoulian: Trump touts US nuclear arsenal amid standoff with North Korea
Remarks by President Trump Before a Briefing on the Opioid Crisis
“North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States.  They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.  He has been very threatening beyond a normal state.  And as I said, they will be met with fire, fury, and, frankly, power, the likes of which this world has never seen before.”

Montana Fire, South Carolina Plutonium, Mortgage Lender Settlement

Missoulian: Fire in northwestern Montana forces evacuations

Montana InciWeb

Missoulian: State sues US for $100M over failure to remove plutonium

SC Files $100 Million Lawsuit Against U.S.

Missoulian: Mortgage lender PHH agrees to pay $74 million settlement

PHH Agrees To Pay Over $74 Million To Resolve Alleged False Claims Act Liability Arising From Mortgage Lending
“’PHH submitted defective loans for government insurance, and homeowners and taxpayers paid the price. This significant resolution helps rectify the misconduct by returning more than $74 million in wrongfully claimed funds to the government,’ said Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota Gregory Brooker.”

Forensic Evidence, Yellowstone River Easement

Missoulian: Justice Dept. revives effort looking at forensic evidence

Justice Department Announces Plans to Advance Forensic Science
“Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein announced two new Department of Justice projects today at the International Association for Identification’s conference in Atlanta, Georgia. This reinforces the Justice Department’s commitment to sound forensic science practices and to increasing the capacity and effectiveness of forensic science providers by helping to improve the reliability of forensic analysis.”

Missoulian: Easement allows Yellowstone River to wander
Yellowstone River Channel Migration Easement Program
navratil channel migration easement - Montana FWP
“A channel migration easement (CME) is a conservation easement that includes land bordering a stream or river where the Landowner agrees not to riprap or otherwise stabilize the river bank, thereby allowing the river’s natural erosive processes to continue. The purpose of the Navratil CME is to preserve and protect the conservation and agricultural values of the Land, particularly the habitats provided for fish and wildlife species, and to prevent armoring of the river bank within the easement area, in perpetuity. The project area is located about 4 miles south of Sidney, MT, along approximately 3,500 feet of the west bank of the Yellowstone River.”