Measuring long-term exposure to wildfire PM_2.5 in California: Time-varying inequities in environmental burden.

ABSTRACT: Wildfires have become more frequent and intense due to climate change and outdoor wildfire fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) concentrations differ from relatively smoothly varying total PM_2.5. Thus, we introduced a conceptual model for computing long-term wildfire PM_2.5 and assessed disproportionate exposures among marginalized communities. We used monitoring data and statistical techniques to characterize annual wildfire PM_2.5 exposure based on intermittent and extreme daily wildfire PM_2.5 concentrations in California census tracts (2006 to 2020). Metrics included: 1) weeks with wildfire PM_2.5 < 5 μg/m³; 2) days with non-zero wildfire PM_2.5; 3) mean wildfire PM_2.5 during peak exposure week; 4)

SUBMITTER: Casey JA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10895344 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature