Science Inventory

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Recent increases in the frequency and severity of wildfires have led to increased smoke exposure in communities within western states. The current approach to wildfire smoke risk communication is often limited by the relative sparsity of existing regulatory monitoring networks in...

Emission measurement systems making use of miniaturized sensors and samplers have been developed for portable sampling from aerial platforms. Small, shoebox-sized systems called “Kolibri”, weighing 3-4.5 kg, have been deployed on USGS- and NASA-flown unmanned aerial s...

EPA’s 2014 National Emission Inventory reports emissions by flaming and smoldering combustion phases. The mass fraction of each chemical constituent is derived from EPA’s SPECIATE database, which does not account for combustion phase and represents a minimal range of ...

The Environmental Protection Agency was established in 1970 as a regulatory agency charged with the evaluation of air pollutants and emissions “as necessary to protect public health and the environment” and to regulate pollutants “which may reasonably be anticip...

Particulate matter (PM) from wildland fires is composed almost entirely of carbonaceous material; however, this PM may also contain many other trace elements at a minor fraction of total PM mass. Lead (Pb) is an EPA criteria pollutant that is present at very low concentrations in...

Smoke from wildland fires as well as from prescribed, agricultural and domestic wood burning is a significant air quality and public health issue. We have previously assessed lung toxicity of biomass smoke particulate matter (PM) from flaming versus smoldering phases of five diff...

Air sensors are increasingly being utilized to monitor air quality impacts from wildfires. In 2020, a low-cost sensor layer was added to the AirNow Fire and Smoke Map as part of the Sensor Data Pilot Project. The addition of this data layer increases the spatial resolution or air...

When wildfire events increase outdoor particulate matter concentrations to unsafe levels, a common recommendation for mitigating smoke exposure is to spend time indoors. However, effectively reducing smoke exposure and maintaining clean air indoors depends on a variety of buildin...

In areas of the United States where wildland fires are a frequent occurrence, exposures to fine particulate matter (“PM2.5” or particles with aerodynamic diameters smaller than 2.5 micrometers) from smoke emissions are an increasing cause for concern. To reduce pollut...

California has experienced extremely devastating wildfires- leading to loss of property and life. The smoke from these fires can negatively impact human health. This presentation to the public health and health care professionals in California about EPA research on health impacts...

Background – The natural cycle of large-scale wildfires is accelerating, increasingly exposing both rural and populous urban areas to wildfire emissions. While respiratory health effects associated with wildfire smoke are well established, cardiovascular effects have been l...

This presentation summarizes fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration data obtained during three major wildfires in 2018 and 2020. The fires occurred in the western United States and resulted in elevated PM2.5 concentrations across large geographic areas. Data were extracted...

Exposure to wildfire smoke is an environmental health topic that is growing in importance and impact and having relevance to many health officials across the country, as well as federal, state and local decision-makers. The webinar presented at the Council of State and Territori...

Smoke from wildfires can quickly degrade air quality in areas downwind, causing a visible haze and health impacts. Modulated by meteorology and fire conditions, smoke impacts vary with time and location, sometimes affecting areas without any nearby air monitors. As part of a fede...

BACKGROUND: The increasing size and frequency of wildland fires are leading to greater potential for cardiopulmonary disease and cancer in exposed populations, however little is known on how the types of fuel and combustion phases affect these adverse outcomes. OBJECTIVES: We e...

Extreme drought occurred over the southern Appalachian region of the southeastern United States (SE U.S.) during the fall of 2016. Tuscaloosa and Birmingham recorded their longest streak of 71 and 61 days, respectively, with no measurable precipitation; and, Montgomery, Atlanta, ...

Climate change is contributing to an increase in the severity of wildland fires. The annual acreage burned in the U.S. has risen steadily since 1985, and the fire season has lengthened. Wildland fires impair air quality by producing massive quantities of particulate air polluta...

This presentation describes information on the occurrence of wildfires, provides a summary of the health impacts of wildfire smoke, and illustrates some resources available from EPA to educate healthcare providers and the public about the health effects of wildfire smoke. The pre...

Estimating the Acute Health Impacts of Fire-Orginated PM2.5 Exposure During the 2017 California Wildfires: Sensitivity to Choices of Inputs

We examine the impact of wildfires and agricultural/prescribed burning on regional air pollution and Air Quality Index (AQI) between 2006 and 2013. We define daily regional air pollution using monitoring sites for ozone (n=1595), PM2.5 collected by Federal Reference Method (n=10...

Wildfires have various impacts on water quality and air quality—which can ultimately impact public health. US EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD) has a diverse and robust wildfire and public health research portfolio. ORD research on water impacts of wildfi...

California residents have experienced increasing frequency of catastrophic wildfires over the last decade, threatening community security, health, and safety.  In recognizing this existential threat, the state of California is dramatically increasing its use of prescribed fi...

Accurate fire emissions inventories are crucial to predict the impacts of wildland fires on air quality and atmospheric composition. Two traditional approaches are widely used to calculate fire emissions: a satellite-based top-down approach and a fuels-based bottom-up approach. H...

Until recently, air quality impacts from wildfires were predominantly determined using the Air Quality Index (AQI), calculated from data from permanent stationary regulatory air pollution monitors. However, low-cost particulate matter (PM) sensors are now being widely used by the...

We simulated public health forecast-based interventions during a wildfire smoke episode in rural North Carolina to show the potential for use of modeled smoke forecasts toward reducing the health burden and showed a significant economic benefit of reducing exposures. Daily and co...