Study looks at impact of wildfire smoke

It’s no secret that wildfire smoke isn’t a good thing, but researchers from the University of Montana in Missoula want to take a closer look at the health impacts of sustained smoke exposure.

A team of health science experts sampled 95 residents in the Seeley Lake area to assess the impact of sustained exposure to wildfire smoke from the Rice Ridge Fire, which has torched more than 160,000 acres this summer.

Their efforts were spurred by a suggestion from Missoula City-Country Health Department air quality specialist Sarah Coefield. She posed the idea of studying local residents after realizing how little research there was on the impacts of wildlife smoke.

“We have never seen a smoke event like this before,” Coefield said. “We know that it’s bad for you ….. we just don’t know what that level of smoke would mean.”

During a 50-day period from July 31 to Sept. 18, Seeley Lake had just one morning where air quality was rated “good” and 36 days where it was considered “hazardous.”

“This was off the charts hazardous,” she said. “We don’t actually have a category for the level of thick smoke that they had.”

Air quality is calculated by measuring the amount of micrograms of fine particulates per cubic meter of air for one hour. Good air is when that value is 12 or less. Seeley Lake had days where those values topped 1,000.

“They exceeded our ability to measure it on nine different days,” Coefield added.

The fine particulates generated by wildfire smoke pose a multitude of health risks. They can enter the bloodstream and trigger inflammation and respiratory issues such as asthma and bronchitis.

To recruit participants for the smoke study, the team placed a notice in the weekly newspaper, the Seeley Swan Pathfinder, hung posters in local hangouts and mailed postcards to Seeley Lake residents.

Between 120 and 130 showed up at the Seeley Lake Community Hall on Sept. 20, some of which had to be turned away due to limited study supplies.

“Folks were clearly really interested in it,” Coefield said.

Researchers administered multiple surveys looking at residents’ health history, how they experienced the smoke and what they did, or didn’t do, to limit their exposure. The team also tested participants’ lung function and blood pressure.

Coefield said the study isn’t perfect — it was put on in response to the smoke, which didn’t give university researchers much time to plan, thereby limiting the amount of data they could gather.

“We couldn’t collect as much information as we would have liked,” Coefield said, “but we’re going to have data that we’ve never had before and hopefully give us information that will be useful in future years.”

Reporter Mackenzie Reiss may be reached at 758-4433 or mreiss@dailyinterlake.com