The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has removed Libby from a list of cities that don’t meet national air quality standards. The agency found the city was not meeting air quality standards in 1993 due to high levels of particulate matter from dust on gravel roads and smoke from wood-burning stoves.
Air quality monitoring between 2014 and 2021 showed that particulate levels have been reduced by regulating wood-burning stoves and implementing dust regulations on gravel roads.
The EPA will still continue to monitor particulate levels in the city to ensure that those regulations continue to keep air quality within national guidelines.