Study: Poorer children more exposed to wildfire smoke

James Dobson

(Missoula Current) When wildfire smoke fills a city, a new report says children from poorer neighborhoods are more likely to risk their health playing in parks.

This choice of when to play despite smoke is highly personal, but researchers at the University of Montana found that low-income children often don’t have the resources wealthier families do to find clean air.

Ray Ramberg had this choice made for him as he took his family to a flag football practice Sunday. Watching kids through the smoke at Fort Missoula Regional Park, Ramberg said he would have preferred to keep his family indoors.

“My kids are running around in this, and I’ll be completely honest, it irritates me a little bit,” Ramberg said. “They shouldn’t have to smoke a pack of cigarettes to have a football practice.”

Health officials at the Environmental Protection Agency say exposure to wildfire smoke can cause many negative health effects, including inflammation, a weakened immune system, headaches, bronchitis and reduced lung function. Children under the age of 18 are especially vulnerable, as their lungs are not fully developed.

Much of Missoula experienced smoke Sunday, with particulate matter from the fires reaching unhealthy levels in some neighborhoods. In other parts of the city, smoke only reached levels unhealthy for sensitive groups, making the city-wide decision to stop park programming difficult.

That decision typically falls on Meg Whicher, the recreation programs manager for Missoula Parks and Recreation. She said she frequently checks air quality during smoke events and relies on Montana Department of Environmental Quality guidelines when making the call.

“It's literally a game of how flexible, adaptive, and on-the-spot you can be in order to support kids and families,” Whicher said. “On days when it's orange, I really take a mental balance of what's best for kids. Is canceling an activity more detrimental to their overall well-being in regards to behavioral mental health, or their physical health?”

The decision to play outside in the smoke becomes much more complicated for families who cannot afford to find clean air indoors.

A new study, published in Ecological Economics looked at how often people visited city parks during smoke events by comparing cell phone use within the parks on clear and smoky days. Looking at parks in 13 cities, including Missoula, Researchers say that on moderately smoky days, people in wealthy neighborhoods reduced park use by up to 40 percent. Attendance to parks in poorer neighborhoods saw almost no change on the same days.

Only when the smoke became thick enough to be unhealthy for everyone did park visits drop everywhere. Katrina Mullan, head researcher for the study, said there are likely many financial reasons for this choice.

“It’s easier to stay home if you have a more spacious or comfortable home,” Mullan said. “It did seem like it was more likely to be differences in kind of what you have to give up by not going to the park.”

Another study cited in the paper said it costs families about 52 dollars to keep children indoors for a day. It showed that the cost of finding indoor spaces with clean air that entertain children quickly increases.

Mullan said she is adding up the cost for her own two children, as it’s tough to give up the social and mental wellbeing of playing in community spaces.

“Since I started doing this research I initially was quite obsessive,” Mullan said. “I've actually softened slightly. On the days when it's moderate I've actually decided that it's not good for any of our physical or mental health to stop going outside as soon as it's even slightly smoky, because you could have weeks where it's slightly smoky, or very smoky.”

The Missoula Public Library is the only free space with certified clean air for children in the city, but new spaces could open soon. Missoula Public Health says they are partnering with the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services to create clean indoor air across the county using school gymnasiums. MPH has also partnered with Climate Smart Missoula to install air quality sensors near schools throughout the city.

MPH air quality specialist Kerri Mueller said there is no current timeline for those projects to be finished, so the best thing people can do right now, is clean the air inside their homes and be strategic about when to play outside.

“We can't necessarily stop a wildfire and stop the wildfire smoke from being here, but we can take some actions,” Mueller said. “If it's that integral to your day, maybe just think about doing an activity that is not as strenuous.

If you’re struggling to afford clean air during smoke events, Northwestern Energy offers a rebate to their customers for HEPA air cleaners up to $100 through the end of September. Climate Smart Missoula also offers a tutorial on how you can make an inexpensive air cleaner using a box fan and furnace filter.

The Missoula Public Health Department publishes daily updates during smoke events. You can sign up for their email list by visiting missoulapublichealth.org/environment/air/. To see the current air quality across the country, visit fire.airnow.gov.