H10: Airborne Hazards Across Post-Wildfire Burn and Debris Sites

Ernest N. Morial New Orleans Convention Center 

Wildland-urban interface fires generate complex airborne contaminants from the combustion of vegetation, buildings, and consumer materials. This session presents three separate sampling studies characterizing airborne particulates and soil contaminants across multiple stages of wildfire events in Southern California, representing potential exposure characteristics to firefighters and other workers, from burn zones to landfill debris disposal sites. Study one was conducted following the January 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires, indoor and outdoor air sampling at standing homes characterized suspended particle size, morphology, and elemental composition using SEM-EDX. Subsequent preliminary exposure using Drosophila models was conducted to compare ash toxicity. Study two collected post-wildfire burn-zone air-monitoring data on VOCs, PAHs, aldehydes, elemental carbon, asbestos, and nanoparticles, with complementary soil analysis quantifying heavy metals. Study three examines single-day perimeter air and surface dust sampling at wildfire debris-accepting landfills versus a control site to assess whether burn zone contaminants migrate further into the debris management pathway, measuring asbestos, silica, VOCs, total dust, and heavy metals via ICP-MS. Together, these findings highlight multi-stage residential and occupational exposure risks from burn zones to debris management sites, and underscore understudied populations, including informal and secondary workers in debris handling, who often lack exposure characterization and regulatory protections.

Upon completion, the participant will be able to:
• Assess the types, concentrations, and physical properties of airborne contaminants present across multiple stages of post-wildfire environments, from active burn zones to debris management sites, with one study including preliminary toxicological exposure data using in vivo modeling.
• Compare airborne and surface contaminant profiles between indoor/outdoor residential burn zone environments and wildfire debris-receiving landfill perimeters to identify how exposure risks shift across the debris management pathway.
• Evaluate the adequacy of current exposure assessment frameworks for capturing aerosol, particulate, and chemical hazards in post-WUI fire settings, and identify gaps warranting further characterization.
• Discuss relevant understudied and underprotected worker populations at risk of exposure, including informal and secondary debris handling workers, who face occupational exposure risks in post-wildfire cleanup operations.
• Anticipate emerging contaminants of concern likely to require expanded characterization and regulatory oversight as WUI fire frequency and complexity increase. 

Community Exposure

Exposure Assessment

Aerosol and airborne particulate monitoring

Asbestos, lead, and dust

Environmental protection and monitoring

Exposure Assessment

Toxicology

In-person

Student and Early Career Professional Track

Professional