Grantee Research Project Results
School Resilience to Wildland Smoke and Outdoor sources of Fine & Ultrafine Particles
EPA Grant Number: R840234Title: School Resilience to Wildland Smoke and Outdoor sources of Fine & Ultrafine Particles
Investigators: Austin, Elena , Karr, Catherine , Seto, Edmund , Larson, Timothy V.
Institution: University of Washington
EPA Project Officer: Chung, Serena
Project Period: September 1, 2021 through August 31, 2024
Project Amount: $548,537
RFA: Interventions and Communication Strategies to Reduce Health Risks of Wildland Fire Smoke Exposures (2021) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Early Career Awards , Air Quality and Air Toxics , Wildfires
Objective:
We propose to 1. Implement a classroom-based Portable Air Cleaner (PAC) intervention to reduce exposure to wildland fire smoke across 10 Washington State schools. 2. Observe impact of the PAC intervention on respiratory health of students using a randomized-controlled study design within school. 3. Engage with participating schools to adapt an existing hands-on air quality curriculum aimed at increasing environmental health literacy on the topic of ambient smoke, air quality and health.
Approach:
University of Washington (UW) air pollution researchers will partner with selected School Districts, serving a diverse population including Native American and Hispanic youth, across Washington State. The aim of this partnership is to develop a classroom-based intervention to improve indoor air quality PAC removal of fine and ultrafine particles as well as education of students and teachers to increase understanding of wildland smoke impacts and smoke readiness principles. The project enhances existing efforts taking place in WA State to identify evidence-based solutions to improve indoor air quality in schools. The project will recruit 10 elementary schools, located across an urban to rural gradient. A model predicting size-fractioned infiltration rates will be developed based on repeated 24 hours measures at all participating schools. Student participation in an ambient smoke education program, paired with information on home and school smoke-readiness will be offered to all participants. Evaluation of the curriculum will take place through structured interviews with participating teachers, pre-post evaluation of student knowledge and end of year survey of student families to determine dissemination of knowledge by students to their families and community.
Expected Results:
Expected outputs include: 1) A model of size-fractioned particle infiltration in both rural and urban schools that takes into account building-type, ventilation parameters and existing filtration type. 2) Direct evaluation of the efficacy of reducing exposure to wildland fire smoke using an appropriately sized PAC with auto-mode in classroom settings. 3) Measures of the association between indoor air quality and respiratory health in a diverse cohort of elementary school children. Expected outcomes include: a new multi-cultural partnership to develop and evaluate solutions to shared concerns regarding infiltration of wildland smoke and other outdoor sources of combustion into indoor classroom spaces. This partnership will ensure that the study methods and results will be relevant for local and State policy prioritization and decision-making regarding wildland fire smoke exposures and school-based responses.