Implications of the
California Wildfires for
Health, Communities, and
Preparedness
PROCEEDINGS OF A WORKSHOP
Steve Olson, Rapporteur
Forum on Medical and Public Health Preparedness for
Disasters and Emergencies
Roundtable on Population Heath Improvement
Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity
Roundtable on Environmental Health Services, Research, and Medicine
Board on Health Sciences Policy
Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice
Health and Medicine Division
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This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of Sciences and Administration for Children and Families (Department of Health and Human Services [HHS]), Aetna Foundation, American Burn Association, American College of Emergency Physicians, American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma, American Hospital Association, American Red Cross, Association of Public Health Laboratories, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, The California Endowment, California Wellness Foundation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Colgate-Palmolive Company, The Colorado Trust, Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Transportation, Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Health Equity, East West Protection, LLC, Emergency Nurses Association, ExxonMobil Foundation, Geisinger, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Health Resources and Services Administration Office of Health Equity, Healthcare Ready, HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, Infectious Diseases Society of America, Kaiser Permanente, The Kresge Foundation, Merck & Co, Inc., National Association of Chain Drug Stores, National Association of County & City Health Officials, National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians, National Fire Protection Association, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Library of Medicine, Nemours, New York State Health Foundation, New York University Langone Health Department of Population Health, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, The Rippel Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Samueli Institute, Trauma Center Association of America, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, The University of Texas, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center—Stakeholder Health. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-49987-3
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-49987-9
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/25622
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. Implications of the California wildfires for health, communities, and preparedness: Proceedings of a workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25622.
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PLANNING COMMITTEE ON IMPLICATIONS OF THE CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES FOR HEALTH, COMMUNITIES, AND PREPAREDNESS1
KENNETH W. KIZER (Chair), Director of the Institute for Population Health Improvement, University of California, Davis, Health
JULIE BALDWIN, Director, Center for Health Equity Research, Northern Arizona University
MICHELLE BELL, Mary E. Pinchot Professor of Environmental Health, Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
WAYNE E. CASCIO, Director, Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
DAVID EISENMAN, Professor-in-Residence, David Geffen School of Medicine and Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles
RICHARD J. JACKSON, Former Professor and Chair, Environmental Health Sciences, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles
WAYNE B. JONAS, President and Chief Executive Officer, Samueli Institute
SUZET M. McKINNEY, Executive Director, Illinois Medical District Commission WINSTON WONG, Medical Director, Community Benefit; Director, Disparities Improvement and Quality Initiatives, Kaiser Permanente
Health and Medicine Division Staff
KAREN M. ANDERSON, Senior Program Officer
ALINA BACIU, Senior Program Officer
KATHLEEN STRATTON, Scholar
SCOTT WOLLEK, Senior Program Officer
CAROLINE M. CILIO, Associate Program Officer
AIMEE MEAD, Associate Program Officer
PAMELA RAMEY-McCRAY, Senior Program Assistant
KIMBERLY SUTTON, Senior Program Assistant
ROSE MARIE MARTINEZ, Senior Board Director
ANDREW M. POPE, Senior Board Director
___________________
1 The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s planning committees are solely responsible for organizing the workshop, identifying topics, and choosing speakers. The responsibility for the published Proceedings of a Workshop rests with the workshop rapporteur and the institution.
Consultant
STEVE OLSON, Science Writer
Reviewers
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Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of the proceedings nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this proceedings was overseen by MARTÍN-J. SEPÚLVEDA, Claraluzz, LLC. He was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this proceedings was carried out in accordance with standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the rapporteur and the National Academies.
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Contents
2 CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES: PAST AND FUTURE
The Role of Climate Change in California Wildfires
Health and Medical Responses to the California Wildfires
3 POPULATIONS IMPACTED BY WILDFIRES
Meeting the Needs of Vulnerable Populations
A Native American Perspective on Wildfires
Getting Services to Vulnerable Populations
The Effects on Surrounding Communities
4 EFFECTS OF WILDFIRES ON HUMAN HEALTH
The Health Effects of Wildfire Smoke
Challenges and Limitations of Wildfire Smoke Exposure Research
Occupational Exposure to Wildfire Smoke Among Agricultural Workers
Health Effects for Wildland Firefighters
Responding to and Recovering from Wildfire-Caused Drinking-Water System Contamination
The Effects of Wildfire Smoke on Rhesus Macaques
Connecting Emergency Management with Human Services
Recovery and Adaptation in North-Central Washington State
Accessing the Resources of a Local University
6 ENHANCING OPERATIONAL RESPONSE
Enhancing Operational Response to Protect Cardiopulmonary Health
Evidence-Based and Trauma-Informed Psychological Response to Disasters
Los Angeles County Public Health Emergency Operational Response
7 THE IMPACT OF MITIGATION AND PREPAREDNESS
Engaging Washington Communities to Build Resilience to Wildfire Smoke
Structure Ignition Issues in Wildfire Prevention
Improving Society’s Relationship with Fire
Creating Climate and Health Adaptations
Leveraging Citizen Science for Research and Environmental Public Health