How to Keep Kids Indoors During the Covid-19 Fires: Finding Your Own Indoor Air Purifiers isn’t Enough
A new study shows that Americans are breathing in more wildfire smoke than they did 10 years ago. The worst places to live are those where there are more people of color, immigrant communities and areas where there are more crowded housing.
In short, already disadvantaged communities are bearing the brunt of growing health risks from wildfire smoke in the US. That’s something to keep in mind this week after wildfire smoke smashed air pollution records across the US.
Some households had installed sensors indoors to track air quality levels. The data from 1,400 sensors in San Francisco and Los Angeles shows that air pollution tripled during the fires.
The lesson: just going inside isn’t enough. Invisible particles in smoke, known as particulate matter or PM 2.5, can seep in through doors and cracks in windows. It can be worse in older homes and substandard housing.
Researchers found the households that took action did a better job. Those that closed their windows, had air purifiers or ran central air conditioners had lower levels of indoor pollution.
The Covid-19 pandemic has made portable indoor air purifiers a much more common item, but when smoke fills the skies, it can be tough to find one in a store. Plans to build more affordable air purifiers are online where anyone can buy a box fan, an air filter and duct tape.
Many schools close when air quality reaches hazardous levels, but policies can be patchwork and haphazard. While an elementary school might close for the day, nearby preschools or aftercare programs might remain open.
It can be difficult for school administrators to make a decision. Many working parents have no other options for where to send their kids. And knowing when to keep kids indoors can be tough for families, based on the official air quality index or AQI. There’s no guidance on whether a yellow or orange air alert is sufficient to keep kids under lock and key, even if they are considered sensitive.
As wildfire smoke became more severe in California, state officials released an index with more specific advice for schools about activities, like what to do about P.E., recess and sports events. (In the state’s version, it doesn’t mention exact air quality index numbers, though many school districts have consulted local air quality officials and created guidelines, like this version from Shasta County Office of Education.)
Eric Wittmershaus is the director of communications for the Sonoma County Office of Education. The new “snow days” are on the West Coast.
Wittmershaus recommends that school officials think about whether the students will be safer and more healthy in their school building when it comes to heating and cooling, than at home. “It’s going to be a fact of life we struggle with.”
Many people don’t realize they need to protect themselves from smoke, unlike other extreme weather events. The elderly or those with health problems might struggle to get the tools and solutions to filter the air at home. Those who lack housing have no way to escape being exposed.
“We see individuals with access to fewer resources, who may live in substandard housing, who may desire to reduce their exposure, but who are able to do so, even if they don’t have enough money to do so,” says Gabriel Wong-Parodi, assistant professor in the department
According to her research, not a lot of people check the air quality index on a regular basis and change their behavior. Instead, seeing how other people react to smoke is the bigger motivator.
Make sure that the message is coming from those in the community, like the faith groups or senior centers. Providing masks, air filters and resources to groups on the ground can help ensure it reaches those who need it most.
The Effects of Wildfire Smoke on the Population of a Marginized Community (Sustaining Communities in the Lowest Rise in Temperature and Sea Levels)
The study doesn’t focus on why the disparities it found exist. The front line of climate change can be seen when it comes to the marginalized communities that live in areas with the highest rise in temperatures and sea levels.
The communities that have the most smoke will face disadvantages in trying to find ways to protect themselves from it. Lower income households may not have air purifiers. Air quality warnings can only be given in English, so officials could give the information in other languages if they wanted to.
Satellite data and census data were combined by the researchers to show the population density and other characteristics of the communities exposed. The magnitude of a population’s exposure to smoke is calculated by their study. It’s based on the number of people in a given area and the number of days that group had to cope with wildfire smoke.