Presentation on recent advances in the estimation of visual range. The use of visual range as a public health communication tool raised interest by many in the group and stimulated a discussion. Visual range is a fairly inexpensive tool for...
Smoke Health Effects Research
Selected Presentations
The Selected Presentations tab below displays presentations from the Wildland Fire Smoke Health Effects Research and Tools to Inform Public Health Policy and Recommendations (2015 Workshop). This four hour workshop was organized and presented during the April 2015 International Wildland Fire conference in Boise Idaho. During the workshop experts discussed new science on health impacts of smoke and opportunities to further inform and support development of health policy and recommendations. The workshop included presentations from researchers at the USDA Forest Service, the US Environmental Protection Agency, US Centers for Disease Control, and the British Columbia CDC. The first part of the workshop discussed new and emerging health research to inform public health policy. The second part of the workshop focused on guidelines and recommendations to reduce the public health impacts of smoke exposure, and the new tools for estimating smoke exposure and forecasting.
Selected Publications & Recent Resources
The Selected Publications tab displays several publications addressing smoke and human health. The Recent Smoke Health and Exposure Resources tab displays other publications which have been added to FRAMES since the creation of the Selected Publications tab.
- Selected Presentations
- Selected Publications
- Recent Smoke Health and Exposure Resources
Presenter: Wayne E. Cascio
An overview of the occupational, clinical and epidemiologic evidence of smoke related health effects. The presentation illustrates common biological pathways to adverse health outcomes possibly shared between smoke and other sources of air pollution...
Person: Cascio
Year: 2015
Presenter: Paul Garbe
Presentation discussing challenges in communication during smoke events. Dr. Garbe discussed the importance of local response, and experience, as well as keeping flexible messaging and keeping the message "new" across fire seasons.
Person: Garbe
Year: 2015
Presenter: Ana G. Rappold
A recent study of simulated forecast-based interventions as a tool to reduce the health and economic burden during smoke episodes. The study illustrated a large health burden associated with these events and the potential benefit an adaptation of...
Person: Rappold
Year: 2015
Presenter: Narasimhan K. Larkin , Susan M. O'Neill
Presentation outlining recent advances in the development of smoke modeling. This included a brief discussion of the effectiveness of different smoke model approaches and some examples from the 2014 wildfire season using BlueSky Framework.
Person: Larkin, O'Neill
Year: 2015
Presenter: M. Ian Gilmour
Presentation on the background of the proposed research plan recently funded by a JFSP grant. His research is focused on determining the role of composition and particle size on the toxicity of wildfire emissions. Dr. Gilmour presented a state of the...
Person: Gilmour
Year: 2015
Presenter: Susan Lyon Stone
A discussion on revisions to US Wildfire Guide for Public Health Officials and solicitation for ideas for further revisions. The revised guide will include federal, state and local agencies and will reflect recent advances in scientific evidence and...
Person: Stone
Year: 2015
Presenter: Joseph W. Domitrovich
Presenting research showing that firefighters experience great variability in exposures to smoke depending on the type and duration of tasks performed and atmospheric conditions. The greatest exposures were associated with direct attack, line holding...
Person: Domitrovich
Year: 2015
A screening-level assessment of the health risks of chronic smoke exposure for wildland firefighters
A screening health risk assessment was performed to assess the upper-bound risks of cancer and noncancer adverse health effects among wildland firefighters performing wildfire suppression and prescribed burn management. Of the hundreds of chemicals in...
Person: Booze, Reinhardt, Quiring, Ottmar
Year: 2004
Background: Climate change is likely to increase the threat of wild fires, and little is known about how wild fires affect health in exposed communities. A better understanding of the impacts of the resulting air pollution has important public health...
Person: Liu, Pereira, Uhl, Bravo, Bell
Year: 2015
Objectives: To assess acute respiratory effects experienced by wildland firefighters. Methods: We studied two Interagency Hotshot Crews with questionnaires, spirometry, and measurement of albumin, eosinophilic cationic protein (ECP), and...
Person: Gaughan, Cox-Ganser, Enright, Castellan, Wagner, Hobbs, Bledsoe, Siegel, Kreiss, Weissman
Year: 2008
Extensive measurements of smoke exposure among wildland firefighters are summarized, showing that firefighters can be exposed to significant levels of carbon monoxide and respiratory irritants, including formaldehyde, acrolein, and respirable...
Person: Reinhardt, Ottmar
Year: 2004
Epidemiological studies of biomass smoke health effects have been conducted in a variety of settings and with a variety of study designs. The Health Effects Workgroup discussed several approaches for the investigation of health effects in communities...
Person: Noonan, Balmes
Year: 2010
Myocardial infarction is the leading cause of death in fire fighters and has been linked with exposure to air pollution and fire suppression duties. We therefore investigated the effects of wood smoke exposure on vascular vasomotor and fibrinolytic...
Person: Hunter, Unosson, Bosson, Langrish, Pourazar, Raftis, Miller, Lucking, Boman, Nystrom, Donaldson, Flapan, Shah, Pung, Sadiktsis, Masala, Westerholm, Sandstrom, Blomberg, Newby, Mills
Year: 2014
Emissions from biomass combustion are a major source of indoor and outdoor air pollution, and are estimated to cause millions of premature deaths worldwide annually. Whilst adverse respiratory health effects of biomass exposure are well established,...
Person: Unosson, Blomberg, Sandstrom, Muala, Boman, Nystrom, Westerholm, Mills, Newby, Langrish, Bosson
Year: 2013
Each year, the general public and wildland firefighters in the US are exposed to smoke from wildland fires. As part of an effort to characterize health risks of breathing this smoke, a review of the literature was conducted using five major databases...
Person: Adetona, Reinhardt, Domitrovich, Broyles, Adetona, Kleinman, Ottmar, Naeher
Year: 2016
The guide provides public health officials with the information they need to prepare for smoke events, communicate health risks and take measures to protect public health. It is also a valuable resource for anyone interested in learning more about...
Person: Stone
Year: 2019
Publisher: NWCG Smoke Committee, University of Idaho, College of Natural Resources
Working on a wildland fire incident, you are responsible for the safety of yourself and those around you. At high exposure levels, smoke inhalation can jeopardize this safety by impairing your decision-making abilities. If your health is impaired your...
Year: 2016