Health consequences of thick forest fire smoke to healthy residents in Riau, Indonesia: a cross-sectional study

The infiltration of wildfire smoke and its potential dose on pregnant women: Lessons learned from Indonesia wildfires in 2019

The occurrence of wildfires in Indonesia is prevalent during drought seasons. Multiple toxic pollutants emitted from wildfires have deleterious effects on pregnant women. However, the evidence for these on pregnant women was underreported. The study conducted 24-h monitoring of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations indoors and outdoors in 9 low-income homes in Palangka Raya during the 2019 wildfire season and 6 low-income homes during the 2019 non-wildfire season. A hundred and seventy pregnant women had their PM exposure assessed between July and October 2019 using personal monitors. It was observed that outdoor air pollutant levels were greater than those found indoors without indoor sources. The findings indicate that indoor PM2.5 concentrations were modestly increased by 1.2 times higher than outdoor, suggesting that buildings only partially protected people from exposure during wildfires. The concentrations of PM2.5 were found to be comparatively higher indoors in residential buildings with wood material than in brick houses. The study findings indicate that 8 out of 12 brick houses exhibited a notable RI/O24 h of less than 1 during the wildfires, whereas all I/O24 h ratios during the non-wildfire season were >1, suggesting the influence of indoor sources. Based on the estimation of daily PM2.5 dose, pregnant women received around 21% of their total daily dose during sedentary activity involving cooking. The present research offers empirical support for the view that indoor air quality in low-income households is affected by a complex combination of factors, including wildfire smoke, air tightness, and occupant behaviour. Also, this situation is more likely a potential risk to pregnant women being exposed to wildfire smoke.

A scoping review on the health effects of smoke haze from vegetation and peatland fires in Southeast Asia: Issues with study approaches and interpretation

Smoke haze due to vegetation and peatland fires in Southeast Asia is a serious public health concern. Several approaches have been applied in previous studies; however, the concepts and interpretations of these approaches are poorly understood. In this scoping review, we addressed issues related to the application of epidemiology (EPI), health burden estimation (HBE), and health risk assessment (HRA) approaches, and discussed the interpretation of findings, and current research gaps. Most studies reported an air quality index exceeding the ‘unhealthy’ level, especially during smoke haze periods. Although smoke haze is a regional issue in Southeast Asia, studies on its related health effects have only been reported from several countries in the region. Each approach revealed increased health effects in a distinct manner: EPI studies reported excess mortality and morbidity during smoke haze compared to non-smoke haze periods; HBE studies estimated approximately 100,000 deaths attributable to smoke haze in the entire Southeast Asia considering all-cause mortality and all age groups, which ranged from 1,064–260,000 for specified mortality cause, age group, study area, and study period; HRA studies quantified potential lifetime cancer and non-cancer risks due to exposure to smoke-related chemicals. Currently, there is a lack of interconnection between these three approaches. The EPI approach requires extensive effort to investigate lifetime health effects, whereas the HRA approach needs to clarify the assumptions in exposure assessments to estimate lifetime health risks. The HBE approach allows the presentation of health impact in different scenarios, however, the risk functions used are derived from EPI studies from other regions. Two recent studies applied a combination of the EPI and HBE approaches to address uncertainty issues due to the selection of risk functions. In conclusion, all approaches revealed potential health risks due to smoke haze. Nonetheless, future studies should consider comparable exposure assessments to allow the integration of the three approaches.

Forest Fuel Drying, Pyrolysis and Ignition Processes during Forest Fire: A Review

Forest ecosystems perform several functions that are necessary for maintaining the integrity of the planet’s ecosystem. Forest fires are thus a significant danger to all living things. Forest fire fighting is a foreground task for modern society. Forest fire prediction is one of the most effective ways to solve this urgent issue. Modern prediction systems need to be developed in order to increase the quality of prediction; therefore, it is necessary to generalize knowledge about the processes occurring during a fire. This article discusses the key features of the processes prior to forest fuel ignition (drying and pyrolysis) and the ignition itself, as well as approaches to their experimental and mathematical modeling.

Air pollution and human health

[No abstract available]