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Attachment B: Common Press Releases MEDIA RELEASE Date: Month, Day, Year Contact: Kasey Knutson, Public Information Officer, 509-962-7515 Poor Air Quality Conditions in Kittitas County Kittitas County is currently under a [insert air quality status] air quality advisory, which has been issued by the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology). Smoke as a result of [name of incident] is affecting the air quality in Kittitas County and the alert issued by Ecology is effective until further notice. KCPHD wants residents to be aware of current air quality conditions in order to take necessary steps to avoid negative health effects. Air quality infonnation can be accessed at any time via the Washington Air Quality Advisory (WAQA) online https:llfortress.wa.gov/ecy/enviwa/. WAQA is a tool that measures the air quality with categories ranging from "good" to "hazardous" air. Additional resources include the following: • Washington Smoke Blog http://wasmoke.blogspoLcom/ contains infonnation about smoke as well as active wildfires. • Puget Sound Clean Air's Graphing Tool http ://airgrapbing.pscleanair.org/ shows real time changes for the station in Ellensburg. • National Weather Service http://www.weather.gov/has weather related alerts, including air quality. • Washington State Department of Health's Wildfire Smoke page http ://www .doh. wa.g vi C mrnun ityandEnvirorunentl Ai rQuality/Smok . F romFiresfWi I I fi reSmoke explains the hann of wildfire smoke. "Outdoor activities should take place when we have "good" air. When air quality changes to "moderate" or worse, we recommend people start making changes, including moving indoors," asserts Kittitas County Health Officer, Dr. Mark Larson. Attached is the "Air Pollution and School Activities" table for specific recommendations based on air quality conditions. For more infonnation about health concerns relating to air quality or infonnational resources, please contact KCPHD at (509)-962-7515 . 72