It’s mid October, a time when leaves change, temperatures drop and usually wildfire season has come to a close. But this year, many areas still saw smoky skies and declining air quality as hot, dry conditions continued to fuel wildfires.
It’s indicative of the future scientists expect under human-driven climate change. At the fifth annual Wildfire Smoke Symposium, researchers, health care professionals and government officials gathered in Missoula to discuss life with fire, and adapting to a smokier future.
Ava Orr is a researcher at the University of Montana. She said smoke exposure can have immediate negative health impacts and also long term consequences like chronic respiratory conditions.
"There's lung function decline, increased risk of heart attacks, strokes and elevated risk of respiratory disease," Orr said.
Another concern is the microscopic particles inhaled with smoke. These fragments are smaller than a piece of dust, and can cross into bloodstreams and enter the brain.
Jennifer Robohom, a psychologist, encouraged conference attendees to also consider mental health impacts, which can be harder to measure.
"Just imagine that you've just spent several consecutive weeks or months in deep wildfire smoke and the air is thick and acrid. The view is blocked. The smell is kind of everywhere. There's a feeling of just sort of oppressiveness," she said.
A growing understanding of smoke’s health impacts is driving action — like ensuring people have access to clean indoor air when skies are smoky. State health officials said the first step is expanding air quality monitoring to provide more locally specific data and then creating safe spaces for people to go indoors.
Montana, Colorado and the Nez Perce Tribe in Idaho recently received federal funding to provide cleaner indoor air in public spaces during smoky periods.
