Grantee Research Project Results
2024 Progress Report: Filling data gaps: Development of a community-centered tool for assessing health impacts of intersecting climate hazards, wildfire smoke exposure, and social disparities in rural tribal and aging communities in Alaska
EPA Grant Number: R840479Title: Filling data gaps: Development of a community-centered tool for assessing health impacts of intersecting climate hazards, wildfire smoke exposure, and social disparities in rural tribal and aging communities in Alaska
Investigators: Hahn, Micah , Fresco, Nancy , Errett, Nicole , Busch Isaksen, Tania
Institution: University of Alaska - Anchorage , University of Washington , University of Alaska - Fairbanks
EPA Project Officer: Hahn, Intaek
Project Period: November 1, 2022 through May 13, 2025
Project Period Covered by this Report: November 1, 2023 through October 31,2024
Project Amount: $1,324,131
RFA: Cumulative Health Impacts at the Intersection of Climate Change, Environmental Justice, and Vulnerable Populations/Lifestages: Community-Based Research for Solutions (2021) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Watersheds , Endocrine Disruptors , Environmental Justice , Human Health
Objective:
Alaska faces growing exposure to wildfire smoke alongside climate-related hazards such as warming winters affecting transportation safety, ecological changes disrupting fisheries, and coastal erosion threatening infrastructure. These challenges are amplified by limited road access, gaps in water and sanitation systems, reliance on wild foods, and high rates of chronic disease, with disproportionate impacts on Alaska Native communities. Data disparities, especially in rural Tribal areas, hinder effective adaptation planning. Our goal is to co-develop community-centered tools that address wildfire smoke, interconnected climate stressors, and existing social vulnerabilities to bridge data gaps to support informed, resilient planning.
Progress Summary:
Our diverse Project Team includes representatives from academia, state and Tribal health and fire organizations, and urban and rural Alaska communities. Together, we have co-developed new Wildfire Explorer and Northern Climate Reports modules featuring real-time and forecasted fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and community-level health and vulnerability data. We have supported rural partners in creating Indigenous Health Indicators to integrate community health values into planning and analyzed preliminary data on barriers to hosting low-cost air quality sensors in rural Alaska.
Future Activities:
We will maintain strong collaboration with the Project Team through regular meetings and one-on-one discussions, while working with our external reviewer to collect evaluation data and complete a summative report on the co-production process. Key priorities include integrating AK Dept of Environmental Conservation (AK DEC) air quality sensor feeds and a new historical air quality dataset into the Wildfire Explorer, adding contextual information for the health and social vulnerability data in Northern Climate Reports, and finalizing data maintenance protocols for long-term tool sustainability. We will support our community partners in developing and utilizing their Indigenous Health Indicators. Additionally, we will prioritize creating story-based user guides tailored to diverse users, datasets, and use cases, and we will work with Alaska DEC to expand and analyze the low-cost sensor evaluation survey.
Journal Articles:
No journal articles submitted with this report: View all 5 publications for this projectSupplemental Keywords:
Climate, Alaska, tribal, community-engaged research, human healthProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.