Source-resolved black carbon and PM2.5 exposures during wildfires and prescribed burns
Jordina Gili, Aina Main-Nadal, Barend L. van Drooge, Mar Viana
Abstract
Changes in climate and land-use have significantly increased both the frequency and intensity of wildland fires globally, exacerbating the potential for hazardous impacts on human health. A better understanding of particle exposure concentrations and scenarios is crucial for developing mitigation strategies to reduce the health risks. Here, PM 2.5 and black carbon (BC) concentrations were monitored during wildland fires between 2022-2024, in fire-prone areas in Catalonia (NE Spain), by means of personal monitors (AirBeam2 and Micro-aethalometers AE51 and MA200). Results revealed that exposures to combustion aerosols (PM 2.5 and BC) were significant and comparable during wildfires and prescribed burns (mean PM 2.5 during wildfires = 152 μg/m 3 vs. 110-145 μg/m 3 for prescribed burns). Overall, BC/PM 2.5 ratios showed a large variability as a function of the monitoring scenario, indicating varying contributions from mineral aerosols to the emissions mix originating from fire management and extinction tasks. Specifically, mop-up tasks (final extinction tasks involving stirring top soil using handheld tools) were identified as a significant contributor to PM 2.5 exposures, with 1-minute PM 2.5 peak concentrations reaching up to 1,190 μg/m 3 . These results may be especially valuable for emissions modelling. Source apportionment of multi-wavelength BC datasets provided deeper insights into emissions and their impact on exposure profiles: line operators (who control the fire perimeter) were predominantly exposed to biomass burning smoke (61%) when compared to BC from fossil-fuel combustion ( = 39%), while torchers (in charge of initiating technical fires using fossil-fuel drip-torches) were predominantly exposed to (77% vs. 23% ). These findings highlight the value of portable monitors in the assessment of wildfire emissions and impacts on human exposure and environment. The combination of these tools, reporting data in real-time and with high time-resolution, is key to the design and implementation of effective mitigation strategies for environmental and health concerns related to wildland fires. • Climate and land-use changes drive wildfires, posing health and environmental risks. • Real-time, multi-λ portable monitors monitored PM 2.5 and BC in fire-prone areas. • BC/PM 2.5 ratios showed different smoke and mineral dust contributions. • BC source apportionment showed relevance of fossil fuel-derived BC from drip torches. • Smoke monitoring in wildland fires aids exposure assessment and emissions modelling.