tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Gondwana Res
. 2022 May 4.
doi: 10.1016/j.gr.2022.04.016. Online ahead of print.
Wildfire-Induced Pollution and its Short-Term Impact on COVID-19 Cases and Mortality in California
Hasan Raja Naqvi[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Guneet Mutreja[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Adnan Shakeel[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Karan Singh[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Kumail Abbas[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Darakhsha Fatma Naqvi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Anis Ahmad Chaudhary[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Masood Ahsan Siddiqui[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Alok Sagar Gautam[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sneha Gautam[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Afsar Raza Naqvi[SUP] 8 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Globally, wildfires have seen remarkable increase in duration and size and have become a health hazard. In addition to vegetation and habitat destruction, rapid release of smoke, dust and gaseous pollutants in the atmosphere contributes to its short and long-term detrimental effects. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has emerged as a public health concern worldwide that primarily target lungs and respiratory tract, akin to air pollutants. Studies from our lab and others have demonstrated association between air pollution and COVID-19 infection and mortality rates. However, current knowledge on the impact of wildfire-mediated sudden outburst of air pollutants on COVID-19 is limited. In this study, we examined the association of air pollutants and COVID-19 during wildfires burned during August-October 2020 in California, United States. We observed an increase in the tropospheric pollutants including aerosols (particulate matter [PM]), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO[SUB]2[/SUB]) by approximately 150%, 100% and 20%, respectively, in 2020 compared to the 2019. Except ozone (O[SUB]3[/SUB]), similar proportion of increment was noticed during the peak wildfire period (August 16 - September 15, 2020) in the ground PM[SUB]2.5[/SUB], CO, and NO[SUB]2[/SUB] levels at Fresno, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco, cities with largest active wildfire area. We identified three different spikes in the concentrations of PM[SUB]2.5[/SUB], and CO for the cities examined clearly suggesting wildfire-induced surge in air pollution. Fresno and Sacramento showed increment in the ground PM[SUB]2.5[/SUB], CO and NO[SUB]2[/SUB] levels, while San Diego recorded highest change rate in NO[SUB]2[/SUB] levels. Interestingly, we observed a similar pattern of higher COVID-19 cases and mortalities in the cities with adverse air pollution caused by wildfires. These findings provide a logical rationale to strategize public health policies for future impact of COVID-19 on humans residing in geographic locations susceptible to sudden increase in local air pollution.
Keywords: Air Quality; COVID-19 Pandemic; California; Respiratory Diseases; Wildfires.
. 2022 May 4.
doi: 10.1016/j.gr.2022.04.016. Online ahead of print.
Wildfire-Induced Pollution and its Short-Term Impact on COVID-19 Cases and Mortality in California
Hasan Raja Naqvi[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Guneet Mutreja[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Adnan Shakeel[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Karan Singh[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Kumail Abbas[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Darakhsha Fatma Naqvi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Anis Ahmad Chaudhary[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Masood Ahsan Siddiqui[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Alok Sagar Gautam[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sneha Gautam[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Afsar Raza Naqvi[SUP] 8 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 35529075
- PMCID: PMC9066963
- DOI: 10.1016/j.gr.2022.04.016
Abstract
Globally, wildfires have seen remarkable increase in duration and size and have become a health hazard. In addition to vegetation and habitat destruction, rapid release of smoke, dust and gaseous pollutants in the atmosphere contributes to its short and long-term detrimental effects. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has emerged as a public health concern worldwide that primarily target lungs and respiratory tract, akin to air pollutants. Studies from our lab and others have demonstrated association between air pollution and COVID-19 infection and mortality rates. However, current knowledge on the impact of wildfire-mediated sudden outburst of air pollutants on COVID-19 is limited. In this study, we examined the association of air pollutants and COVID-19 during wildfires burned during August-October 2020 in California, United States. We observed an increase in the tropospheric pollutants including aerosols (particulate matter [PM]), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO[SUB]2[/SUB]) by approximately 150%, 100% and 20%, respectively, in 2020 compared to the 2019. Except ozone (O[SUB]3[/SUB]), similar proportion of increment was noticed during the peak wildfire period (August 16 - September 15, 2020) in the ground PM[SUB]2.5[/SUB], CO, and NO[SUB]2[/SUB] levels at Fresno, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego and San Francisco, cities with largest active wildfire area. We identified three different spikes in the concentrations of PM[SUB]2.5[/SUB], and CO for the cities examined clearly suggesting wildfire-induced surge in air pollution. Fresno and Sacramento showed increment in the ground PM[SUB]2.5[/SUB], CO and NO[SUB]2[/SUB] levels, while San Diego recorded highest change rate in NO[SUB]2[/SUB] levels. Interestingly, we observed a similar pattern of higher COVID-19 cases and mortalities in the cities with adverse air pollution caused by wildfires. These findings provide a logical rationale to strategize public health policies for future impact of COVID-19 on humans residing in geographic locations susceptible to sudden increase in local air pollution.
Keywords: Air Quality; COVID-19 Pandemic; California; Respiratory Diseases; Wildfires.