Editor’s note: Liz Davy has been a member of the Fire Learning Network since 2013. Since 2021, she has co-led the Greater Yellowstone Fire Action Network (GYFAN). Liz has also been a FAC Net member for many years. In this blog, Liz shares efforts on the part of GYFAN to mitigate smoke impacts from fires, with a list of lessons learned and best practices that can apply to supporting any community. All photos including blog cover card are credit to the US Forest Service.

We send our care to communities experiencing the January 2025 wildfire events in the Los Angeles, California area, and will continue to share information on our platforms to support living better with fire.

The summer of 2024 was very smoky across the western United States and particularly in the Greater Yellowstone area. Communities affected by smoke were tired of feeling poorly, staying inside, and experiencing the effects that come with smoke. Smoke is inevitable during wildfire season. Where there is smoke there is fire, and we can certainly reverse that saying and apply it to efforts in the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA) to provide communities with tools to live with smoke. 

No matter the source of the smoke, prescribed fire, wildfire, fire in the immediate vicinity or hundreds of miles away, it is a major impact to residents and tourists alike. The Greater Yellowstone Fire Action Network (GYFAN) developed a program to help communities in the GYA minimize the effects of smoke. We call this a Smoke Ready Community. 

What is a smoke ready community and why are they important?

Being smoke-ready means that communities and individuals have the knowledge and ability to stay reasonably safe and healthy during smoke episodes. A community smoke ready plan includes assessment of local vulnerabilities, plans for appropriate responses, strategies to alert residents and visitors about air quality and smoke, resources available to the community, and actions to take during a fire and smoke event. 

People need local information about air quality and severity of smoke during wildfires or prescribed burns. A community can help citizens and visitors learn about smoke and fire, local air quality during a fire, how to keep indoor air clean, when they may safely go outside and a place within the community with clean air where they can stay. The Greater Yellowstone Fire Action Network is working with communities to develop smoke-ready plans that bring together the agencies, organizations, companies, communities, and other local stakeholders.

GYFAN piloted our smoke ready initiative in 2023 and adapted it to better meet communities’ needs in 2024. Currently, GYFAN has worked with three counties and one National Park to develop a final draft smoke plan (you can view one of those plans for Park County here), two additional plans are in progress and three entities within the Greater Yellowstone Area are considering smoke plan development for 2025. 

Components of a plan include:

• Communication: provides local and current information about air quality to residents and visitors. 
• Implementation strategy: What tasks are delegated to whom and how those tasks are accomplished. 
• Clean air spaces: provide places to stay during intense smoke and poor air quality. 
• Safety gear support: a plan allows communities to provide filters and masks. 
• Partners: Identify others to support the plan such as state and local air quality/environmental divisions and health departments, local government officials, community members and land management agencies. 

What have we learned?

In 2024, the opportunity to implement two of our smoke ready plans presented itself during prescribed burn operations. GYFAN and the county smoke plans were able to both provide time sensitive messaging about smoke to the community using communication mechanisms identified in the smoke plans and provide clean air spaces for people affected by that smoke. GYFAN also partnered with community members to deploy smoke monitoring equipment near the prescribed fire as well as downwind to provide real time air quality information. The air quality information allowed community members to determine their own actions to mitigate the smoke effects and exposure. 

One of the important premises to smoke plans is they are dynamic and always in draft as changes are made when we learn from our experiences. 

Key items we learned during two years of this process include: 

• Air Quality Specialists from the Forest Service and National Park Service are very important support sources. They provide technical expertise and access to resources. GYFAN has a great relationship with Air Quality Specialists.  
• Plans should be modified as lessons are learned during implementation. 
• Coordinate the smoke ready plan with Emergency Managers and Health Departments. Emergency Managers have the mechanisms to communicate with their communities quickly and efficiently. Health Departments know the affected members of the community and can assist them with methods to remedy smoke impacts. As a member of the Eastern Idaho Health Department said, “smoke is a health issue, and we should be involved.” 
• Relationships with members of the adjacent land management agency are critical to ensure smoke messaging meets everyone’s needs. District Ranger Tracy Hollingshead appreciated the opportunity to review and approve messaging developed and disseminated by the County Health Department during a prescribed fire spring 2024. 
• No need to reinvent the wheel when tools and equipment can be shared including messaging, presentation topics, and infographics. A DIY air filter was the most popular handout at a recent preparedness workshop in Lincoln County Wyoming. 
• Smoke will travel long distances and fire managers may not be reaching out to communities located further downwind. 
• Have all resources and messaging ready to deploy as smoke events happen quickly.
• Being a smoke ready community helps with tolerance for prescribed fire because residents are armed with tools to use to minimize effects of smoke.

Smoke-ready community programs can better equip communities to live safely with fire and the resulting smoke, bring together diverse partners, and provide a pathway to continue addressing community needs as they evolve. GYFAN is committed to continuing to grow these programs and share lessons learned as they develop.

****