Unmasking the evidence for reducing harms from wildfire smoke: The role of air cleaners and masks

Abstract

Exposure to wildfire smoke poses a significant health risk. Air cleaning or filtration and mask or respirator use are designed to remove or filter out harmful airborne particles, and both are often recommended public health interventions when air quality is poor. The effectiveness of these interventions in mitigating exposure to ambient air pollution from urban sources is well-supported by existing literature. However, evidence on the effectiveness of these devices during wildfire smoke episodes is less clear. To fill this knowledge gap, the National Collaborating Centres for Environmental Health (NCCEH) and Methods and Tools (NCCMT) conducted a series of rapid evidence reviews to better understand the effect of indoor air filtration and mask-use on non-particulate and particulate matter (PM) combustion-derived air pollutant concentrations and human health endpoints.

This presentation will explore the different air cleaning technologies and mask types, and their effectiveness during wildfire episodes. Practical considerations and limitations of these technologies for mitigating wildfire smoke will also be discussed. Finally, this presentation will evaluate evidence gaps on the impact of air cleaners and masks on health outcomes during wildfire episodes, identifying areas for future study.

Speaker

Ryan Huff Ph.D. is an interdisciplinary scientist with a strong interest in understanding how environmental exposures impact human health. He has extensive experience in basic science and clinical research related to air pollution, including wood, cigarette, and cannabis smoke, as well as ambient and traffic-related air pollution. Ryan earned his PhD in the Experimental Medicine program at the UBC Air Pollution Exposure Laboratory where his research focused on exploring therapeutic interventions for air pollution-induced inflammation in the lungs. Previously, Ryan received his Bachelor of Medical Sciences in Biochemistry from Western University and completed his MSc in Medical Genetics at UBC's Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre. At the NCCEH, Ryan’s work is currently focused on the environmental health impacts of wildfires and interventions.