Exposure to Particulate Matter and Estimation of Volatile Organic Compounds across Wildland Firefighter Job Tasks.

Abstract

Wildland firefighters are exposed to smoke-containing particulate matter (PM) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) while suppressing wildfires. From 2015 to 2017, the U.S. Forest Service conducted a field study collecting breathing zone measurements of PM4 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤4 μm) on wildland firefighters from different crew types and while performing various fire suppression tasks on wildfires. Emission ratios of VOC (parts per billion; ppb): PM1 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤1 μm; mg/m3) were calculated using data from a separate field study conducted in summer 2018, the Western Wildfire Experiment for Cloud Chemistry, Aerosol Absorption, and Nitrogen (WE-CAN) Campaign. These emission ratios were used to estimate wildland firefighter exposure to acrolein, benzene, and formaldehyde. Results of this field sampling campaign reported that exposure to PM4 and VOC varied across wildland firefighter crew type and job task. Type 1 crews had greater exposures to both PM4 and VOCs than type 2 or type 2 initial attack crews, and wildland firefighters performing direct suppression had statistically higher exposures than those performing staging and other tasks (mean differences = 0.82 and 0.75 mg/m3; 95% confidence intervals = 0.38-1.26 and 0.41-1.08 mg/m3, respectively). Of the 81 personal exposure samples collected, 19% of measured PM4 exposures exceeded the recommended National Wildland Fire Coordinating Group occupational exposure limit (0.7 mg/m3). Wildland fire management should continue to find strategies to reduce smoke exposures for wildland firefighters.