Tag Archives: dust abatement

County needs dust program partners

March 4, 2009Environmental Issues, Newsblack oil, Dave Prunty, dust abatement, dust palliative, emulsified asphalt, gravel roads, magnesium chloride, road maintenance, rural roadsnfpa

As promised, Flathead County has set some money aside for a sort-of dust abatement co-pay plan. Trouble is, there aren’t many takers so far. The deadline is March 27th.

From the March 4, 2009 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

Residents who want to tap into Flathead County’s cost-sharing dust abatement program this summer may want to heed an age-old adage: Speak now or forever hold your peace.

The deadline to sign up for the first-time program is March 27, and to date the county has had little response from rural residents, Public Works Director Dave Prunty said Monday.

Read the entire article . . .

“We’re serious about our dust problem”

January 27, 2009Newsdust abatement, gravel roads, North Fork Road, road maintenancenfpa

From the Tuesday, January 27, 2009 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

County officials briefed the county commissioners Monday on last year’s efforts and this year’s plans to deal with vehicles churning up dust on the Flathead’s gravel roads.

“We’ve demonstrated to the [Montana Department of Environmental Quality] and to the state that we’re serious about our dust problem,” Commissioner Chairman Dale Lauman said. “We can’t solve all the dust problems. We never will. But we can mitigate some of the problem.”

Read the entire article . . .

County sets aside $100,000 for dusty roads

December 5, 2008NewsDave Prunty, dust abatement, Gary Hall, North Fork Road, paving, road maintenance, snow removalnfpa

The Thursday, December 4, 2008 online edition of the Hungry Horse News included a report on the November 20th meeting concerning the North Fork Road called by Commissioner Gary Hall. It is an interesting read. Although the meeting concentrated mostly on dust remediation and funding issues, there was another little gem of more immediate interest: County Public Works Director Dave Prunty indicated that snow removal may be sub-par this year.

So, make sure you have a good set of chains and read the article . . .

Flathead County is considering a plan that could help mitigate dust on the county’s some 700 miles of unpaved roads — including the North Fork Road.

In a recent meeting with representatives of several government agencies and North Fork residents, Commissioner Gary Hall presented a draft agreement for a dust control cost share program.

Read the entire article . . .

Yet another dust meeting

November 8, 2008Environmental Issuesdust abatement, Gary Hall, North Fork Road, paving, road maintenancenfpa

Outgoing Flathead County Commissioner Gary Hall wants to have another meeting on the North Fork Road. This one, apparently, will concentrate on dust mitigation issues. (For background on an earlier, similar meeting, see here and here.) The meeting will be held on November 20th, from 4 to 6pm in the conference room at Freedom Bank in Columbia Falls. Contact him at ghall@flathead.mt.gov or 253-3026 to let him know you are coming.

We’ll post more details here as they become available.

[Update: Corrected Gary hall’s email address.]

County Preps New Dust Abatement Program for Next Summer

October 28, 2008Newsblack oil, dust abatement, magnesium chloride, road maintenancenfpa

From the October 28, 2008 online edition of the Flathead Beacon…

With gravel roads at the center of a decade-long controversy in Flathead County, it stands to reason officials would welcome the winter snows that quell dust troubles. But this winter could pose its own set of problems for the roads department and, for a change, Public Works Director Dave Prunty is looking forward to summer.

“It’s the end of road dust season, and I’m already excited for the next one,” Prunty told commissioners recently. “It’s good to feel like we’ll be making new progress.”

There’s cause for Prunty’s optimism: The county commission set aside $100,000 in this fiscal year’s budget for a cost-sharing dust abatement program with county residents. As part of the joint effort, neighboring landowners would band together and pay for half the cost to place magnesium chloride – a dust palliative – on their road. The county then would use its equipment to prepare the road for application and pay the remaining half of the cost for a private company to apply the chemical.

Read the entire article…