LOCKWOOD - A malfunctioning air quality monitor is temporarily offline after reporting inaccurate air quality data, according to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.The monitor, which measures fine particulate matter , has been producing erroneous readings because of a malfunction with the equipment. Those tiny PM2.5 particles are the primary health concern during wildfire smoke events because they are small enough to be inhaled deep into the lungs.DEQ first attempted to troubleshoot the monitor remotely after the malfunction was detected. When those efforts were unsuccessful, technicians replaced the malfunctioning component July 1.While replacing the missing filter resolved part of the problem, the monitor continued experiencing issues and remains offline as crews investigate the remaining malfunction.DEQ plans to replace additional equipment around July 7, and the monitor could remain offline for several more days.Officials said the faulty monitor was incorrectly reporting all airborne particles instead of only fine particulate matter, causing air quality readings to appear much higher than actual conditions.While the regulatory monitor is offline, DEQ said lower-grade sensors at the Billings monitoring station continue reporting current air quality conditions.Additional community air sensors in the area are also providing data.The inaccurate readings may have triggered air quality alerts through some third-party weather apps that automatically pull data from the nearest monitoring station.DEQ encourages anyone concerned about current air quality DEQ encourages anyone concerned about current air quality to use the federal AirNow Fire and Smoke Map [fire.airnow.gov] in addition to Montanas Todays Air website [todaysair.mtdeq.us]. ...read more read less