Remote Sensing of Wildfire Smoke Exposures to Assess Health Effects

描述(由申请人提供)： 南加州在2007年10月经历了灾难性的野火，烧毁了50多万英亩土地和2,000多所房屋。颗粒物(PM)浓度持续了近两周的升高，室外PM10和PM2.5的24小时平均浓度接近某些地点通常观测到的水平的10倍。在这场野火期间，儿童健康研究(CHS)现场小组正在测量肺功能和呼出一氧化氮(ENO)，这两项都是客观衡量呼吸健康的指标，作为先前计划活动的一部分。这些同时发生的事件为实质性改进当前的健康风险评估技术提供了一个独特的机会。通过将卫星图像和遥感数据与固定地点监测数据相结合，生成PM2.5和PM10暴露的本地估计，我们当前的健康和暴露信息可以用于改进野火事件暴露评估。对于南加州受到最近野火烟雾影响的每一天，都可以评估烟雾暴露对儿童呼吸健康的影响。由MODIS(中分辨率成像光谱仪)测量的气溶胶光学厚度(AOD)将与卫星图像、气象数据和固定地点空气污染监测数据相结合，以估计与野火相关的空气污染加剧期间空气盆地中每个一至两平方公里网格单元的PM浓度。我们将检验估计的PM浓度与500多名社区卫生服务参与者报告的烟雾暴露情况以及从社区公立学校获得的报告是否相关。我们独特的队列资源将用于研究野火期间PM2.5和PM10浓度的时间和空间分辨率估计是否对儿童肺功能和ENO产生短期(数天)或长期(数周或数月)的影响。在这项研究期间开发的工具将填补未来野火事件期间现有暴露评估方法的关键空白，如果潜在的全球变暖情景发生，预计这些空白将再次发生并增加。改进对烟雾暴露的评估和更好地了解野火对健康的影响，将是在未来野火事件期间提出保护公众健康建议的重要因素。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Southern California experienced catastrophic wildfires in October 2007 that burned more than 500,000 acres and over 2,000 homes. Particulate matter (PM) concentrations were elevated for nearly two weeks, with 24- hour average PM10 and PM2.5 outdoor concentrations approaching 10 times the levels typically observed in some locations. During this wildfire period the Children's Health Study (CHS) field team was measuring lung function and exhaled NO (eNO), both objective measures of respiratory health, as part of previously scheduled activities. These concurrent events provide a unique opportunity to substantively improve current health risk assessment technology. By combining satellite imagery and remote sensing data with fixed-site monitoring data to produce local estimates of PM2.5 and PM10 exposure, our current health and exposure information can be used to improve wildfire event exposure assessment. For each day that the Southern California was impacted by recent wildfire smoke, the impact of smoke exposure on children's respiratory health can be assessed. Measurements of aerosol optical depth (AOD) made from MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) will be integrated with satellite imagery, meteorological data, and fixed-site air pollution monitoring data to estimate PM concentrations for each one- to two-kilometer square grid cell in the air basin during the hours of elevated air pollution associated with the wildfire. We will examine whether estimated PM concentrations correlate with reported smoke exposures from a sample of over 500 CHS participants and by reports obtained from community public schools. Our unique cohort resource will be used to examine whether temporally- and spatially-resolved estimates of PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations during wildfires have short- (days) or longer-term (weeks or months) effects on children's lung function and eNO. The tools developed during this study will fill critical gaps in existing exposure assessment methods during future wildfire events, which are expected to recur and increase if potential global warming scenarios develop. Improved assessment of smoke exposures and a greater understanding of wildfire health effects will be important elements in making recommendations to protect public health during future wildfire events.