Occupational Exposure to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon of Wildland Firefighters at Prescribed and Wildland Fires

Details

• Personal Author:
  Balmes JR ; Cisneros R ; Hammond SK ; Navarro KM ; Noth EM
• Description:
  Wildland firefighters suppressing wildland fires or conducting prescribed fires work long shifts during which they are exposed to high levels of wood smoke with no respiratory protection. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are hazardous air pollutants formed during incomplete combustion. Exposure to PAHs was measured for 21 wildland firefighters suppressing two wildland fires and 4 wildland firefighters conducting prescribed burns in California. Personal air samples were actively collected using XAD4-coated quartz fiber filters and XAD2 sorbent tubes. Samples were analyzed for 17 individual PAHs through extraction with dichloromethane and gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer analysis. Naphthalene, retene, and phenanthrene were consistently the highest measured PAHs. PAH concentrations were higher at wildland fires compared to prescribed fires and were highest for firefighters during job tasks that involve the most direct contact with smoke near an actively burning wildland fire. Although concentrations did not exceed current occupational exposure limits, wildland firefighters are exposed to PAHs not only on the fire line at wildland fires, but also while working prescribed burns and while off-duty. Characterization of occupational exposures from wildland firefighting is important to understand better any potential long-term health effects. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Pollutants, Occupational Environmental Monitoring Firefighters Fires Hydrocarbons Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Safety Wildfires Wood

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• Keywords:
  Air Pollutants Air Samples Air Sampling Combustion Environmental Monitoring Fire Fighters Fire Fighting Fire Suppression Forest Fires Gas Chromatography Humans Long Work Hours Mass Spectrometry Naphthalene Occupational Exposure Phenanthrene Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Smoke Control Smoke Inhalation

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• ISSN:
  0013-936X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  51
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052893
• Citation:
  Environ Sci Technol 2017 Jun; 51(11):6461-6469
• Contact Point Address:
  Kathleen M. Navarro, Division of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California, United States
• Email:
  kathleennav@gmail.com
• CAS Registry Number:
  Naphthalene (CAS RN 91-20-3) ; Phenanthrene (CAS RN 85-01-8) ; Retene (CAS RN 483-65-8)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  University of California, Berkeley
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Environmental Science and Technology
• End Date:
  20250630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:dfb3be0a6eb8d896da029b2f4ed646b94d1741550e8e29765d6e2668646229e88996017484b29d6bb3e3dc512f7b9a9d57340fce65bcf1f4db69e6188907c13d
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/215799/cdc_215799_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 368.19 KB ]